The Rainbow Squids
by Branchwing
Summary: (HIATUS) The Rainbow Squids are like any other inkling youth - doing turf wars and whatnot, even when they are down a member for the time being. However, no one knows when she will return, and now they have a rival group to deal with - a group of octolings called Octa Prisma.
1. One Last War

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Splatoon! It belongs to Nintendo!**

**Season 1 Summary (chapters 1-28): "The Rainbow Squids are like any other inkling youth - playing turf wars and whatnot. Even when they're down a member for the time being, life still goes on for them."**

**The story starts in 2017, around the time of Splatoon 2's release. As I did not get into Splatoon until the beginning of this year, some parts may be inaccurate. For that, my apologies!**

**Certain chapters will contain elements from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode and later, Octo Expansion. I will warn you at the beginning of such chapters when we come to that point.**

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_Roy's PoV_

"You're _what?!_"

In the streets of Inkopolis, everyone simply stared at the green-haired inkling in their circle. She remained to have a neutral expression, a poker face, while the red-haired inkling, one with hair slicked to the side, gaped at her.

"You can't leave!" cried Roy, the red-haired inkling. "Not now! The Splatfest is tomorrow!"

"I wish I could," she started, adjusting the dark green beanie she wore, "but the vacation is already paid for, through-and-through. I can't ask for a refund at this point."

"You sure about that?" asked Roy, leaning back in the chair he was sitting in and putting his legs on the table. "Because I know a guy who booked a vacation somewhere, but forgot to buy an airplane ticket the day he was supposed to be there. So, he canceled it."

"That's different," commented the indigo-haired inkling two seats down from him. "You see, that squid you knew had a reason why he had to cancel. Geneva doesn't." The other inklings gathered around the table nodded in agreement.

"Exactly," Geneva, the green-haired inkling, agreed, pointing at Inigo, the indigo inkling, briefly. She cleared her throat, and then said, "I leave tomorrow morning. I don't know when I'll be back."

"But you said it was a vacation," Roy pointed out. "Don't they usually have start and end times? That are set?"

Her green eyes looked away from his glance. "This is different," she muttered. She then stood up, saying, "Enough of that. How about we do a turf war?"

The inklings murmured in agreement, while Roy took his legs off the table and leaned forward. A turf war with Geneva would be their last, and he did not know how long she would be gone. She was just being vague about her whole vacation! Why did she wait until the last minute? Upset thoughts stormed through his head, but he had to keep his temper in control. He clenched a fist and stood up.

"We're in agreement, then?" he asked. Everyone nodded. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Wait a moment, Roy!" called the blue-haired inkling as Roy turned around. He turned his head to look at her. "We need eight inklings if we want a turf war all to ourselves."

"We can get my sister," the orange-haired inkling suggested. "She's usually who we get whenever we need eight." The blue inkling nodded in agreement, clasping her hands.

"I'll call her," the purple-haired inkling declared as he pulled his phone out of his hoodie pocket. He dialed Octavia's, the orange-haired inkling, sister and in a few brief moments, he began talking with someone over the phone. "Yo, Alexis. It's Perry. Can you come to the tower for a battle?" He paused as Alexis spoke. "Yeah, yeah. We just need another member in our crew, yeah?" Another pause. "K. Great. See ya soon." He hung up and turned to say, "She's coming."

"My house isn't far from here," remarked Octavia. "We better get to the tower now."

"What about our weapons? I'm sure Alexis's bringing her dualies, but we weren't even planning this until Geneva brought up her vacation!" the yellow-haired inkling asked.

"Don't ya remember?" started Perry, giving a light punch to the yellow inkling. "We registered as an official team a while back. They're gonna store our weapons in the tower from here on out."

"Oh yeah!" he exclaimed. "I totally forgot!" Yuri, the yellow-haired inkling, immediately started to jump towards the tower. "Come on! Let's go!"

_Well, I'm glad that's dealt with,_ Roy remarked silently as the other inklings caught up with Yuri.

"Come on, slow-poke!" called Octavia. "You're as slow as a snail!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," murmured the blue inkling, Bonnie, in her soft voice. "I like taking my time."

"Don't have much time, do we?" added Perry in compliance with Octavia. "Via's right, you better hurry up."

"Fine, fine…" Bonnie started running to catch up with the group. When they arrived at the tower, they sat down in the lobby, waiting for Alexis to arrive.

"How far is your house exactly?" Inigo asked Via.

"Not far, like I said," replied the orange inkling, who was twirling her longer tentacle around her finger. "Give her a minute or two. She'll come."

At that moment, a short inkling with yellow-orange, chin-length hair burst through the entrance holding a pair of Splat Dualies. She wore a pirate-stripe tee alongside a bobble hat and FishFry sandals. She looked around momentarily before noticing the group of inklings lounging on the bench. The inkling walked up to them.

"Hey," greeted Alexis.

"Hey," greeted the group.

"Where are your weapons?"

"In there," replied Octavia, pointing to the entrance to the lobby. "We were waiting for you to come along."

"Really?" Alexis said with a smile. "Aw, thanks."

"No problem." The orange-haired inkling winked at her younger sister.

Roy stood up and started to head towards the lobby. "I'm gonna get everyone's weapons," he announced. "I'll be back in a few."

With that, the red-haired inkling took a deep breath and stepped inside the lobby. Going up to an interface, he navigated himself to the screen that said 'Rainbow Squids'. He tapped it, and next to the interface, a panel slide open, revealing a staircase. The inkling headed down towards the dimly lit room below in search for the weapons. He squinted, trying to make out the weapons in the dark. As much as he hated to admit, there was a downside to renting a room to store weapons in. They were all exceptionally dark.

He grabbed the first thing he could see and felt it. He put a hand to the barrel and felt the small holes form into a circle. Definitely Yuri's splatling. He never could understand their appeal. He put it by the stairs, where he could see it better, and looked for another weapon. He picked up another dark shape and held it up to the light. Geneva's Splattershot. He threw it next to the Heavy Splatling Deco and kept looking.

The third weapon he found was his own—the Luna Blaster. Smiling, he gently placed it next to Geneva's Splattershot and continued on. The next shape he found was large, and it was most certainly Inigo's roller. He spun the wheel for a little bit before setting it down. He counted the weapons he found on his fingers, and figured he only had three more to go. He felt around the room before coming across a thin object. Judging by the narrowness, it had to be Bonnie's signature Squiffer. He set it on the roller and continued searching.

He felt something at his feet as he was walking, so he looked down. It seemed to be in the shape of a wide brush, a big giveaway to the weapon's identity. He picked up Octavia's Octobrush Nouveau and set it down. He now only had one weapon left to find—Perry's slosher. Well, it was actually a Sloshing Machine, and it happened to be in the very corner of the room, so he grabbed the heavy bucket and dragged it to the dimly lit pile of weapons.

Roy looked at the pile stationed in front of him. Seven weapons, one for each member of the Rainbow Squids. Now, the real challenge would be getting them upstairs. He stepped over them and headed up the stairs to peak out at the lobby. He let out a squeak as he was met with Geneva's combat boots. He looked up to see her staring down at him.

"Hey, I said I got it!" he protested at her appearance.

Geneva smiled. "Did you really think you could carry all that stuff upstairs? Especially that big heavy slosher Perry has." She scratched the back of her head. "I don't understand how he even carries that thing," she quietly remarked.

"I said I don't need your help," Roy complained, folding his arms and turning away from her. No words were uttered, but when he opened an eye to peer back in front of him, the green inkling still stood. The red inkling then picked up Bonnie's charger and threw it at her feet. "…Take this to Bon-Bon."

Her smile curled into a smirk as nodded, picking up the white-and-blue weapon off the ground. "I'll be back," she said as she exited the lobby.

Knowing that Geneva would return shortly, Roy began to bring the weapons to the base floor for her to take. He grabbed the handle of the Carbon Roller and pulled it out, and eventually, he held in both hands the lightweight roller, and held it up. He felt someone grab the top of it, and looked up.

The roller's owner had his fair hands on the wheel. "I'll take that." The red-haired inkling let go, and Inigo pulled his weapon up and threw it over his back. "It's been a while since I've done a turf war."

Looking around, Roy noticed that all of the members of the Rainbow Squids, including Alexis, has circled around him. "What the heck?!" he growled, angry. "I said I was going to get them all!"

"As soon as Geneva came with my Squiffer, we knew there's no way you can get them all yourself," Bonnie explained.

"Come on, Roy, haul them up," Octavia commanded.

Grumbling, he grabbed Via's brush first and held it out for her to grab, which she did. He then gave the green inkling's Splattershot to her, then Yuri's Heavy Splatling Deco, who cheered as soon as he held it in his hands. At last, he grabbed the Sloshing Machine and lugged it upstairs for Perry to take. The purple inkling took it and sat on it while waiting for Roy. The tanned inkling picked up his Luna Blaster and finally got himself to the top of the stairs. When he stepped on the floor again, the panel slid back over the opening to cover it.

"Everyone got their weapons?" he asked. The inklings cheered in affirmation. "Alright, now we gotta decide the teams."

"Boys vs. Girls, anyone?" Yuri suggested. "It's a classic!"

"Dude, that's not fresh at all!" Perry whined, slumping on his slosher.

"Think about it." The dark-skinned inkling threw an arm around the chalk-white one. "We have four boys—me, you, Roy, and Inigo—and four girls—Via, Alexis, Geneva, and Bon-Bon."

"He has a good point," Inigo chimed in.

"Then it's settled," said Roy. "We'll see who wins."

Perry groaned, but he still picked up his slosher, and the eight inklings walked to the elevator that took them to their stage. Once it stopped, the floor slid open to reveal a grate. All eight inklings converted themselves into squid form, and they all slipped through the grate. Moments later, Roy found himself at a spawn point. Once he reverted to his human form, he examined the stage they appeared at. Looking around at the hills, he grimaced. _Great, Blackbelly Skatepark. My favorite._

In a few brief seconds, everyone started to ink the land. Pulling the trigger on the Luna Blaster, a deep green ring, greener than Geneva's green, came out and exploded onto the edge. Alright, his team has green ink. He could work with this. He kept his hand on the trigger as the green ink colored the skatepark. He covered one of the hills so he could swim up it. He melted into the ink and swam up it, the squid form popping out at the top. He transformed back in midair to land and ink the surface he stood on. He quickly inked the platform connecting to it and hid in the ink.

Pink ink splatted onto the central tower, and ripples moved through the ink. He looked up, and popping out at the top of the tower was an inkling with hair styled into a double bun. Bonnie. She threw a point sensor onto the ground, and a dark aura began to hang around him. Dang it. Roy revealed himself and activated his Luna Blaster. He thought he was doing good, making his way towards the tower, when painful ink hit him from behind. He exploded in pink ink and learned his attacker—Octavia, with her deadly Octobrush Nouveau.

He respawned and cursed as soon as he could speak again. He inked a different trail and started to travel through it. Where were the others? Hopefully, they were holding their own just fine. Another inkling swam by him and reformed as Yuri. The spiky-haired inkling through a Splash Wall to try to protect them. Bonnie noticed this, and turned her attention away from an attacker to charge up her Classic Squiffer to destroy the wall. Yuri and Roy took a few steps back as the charger was barely long enough to hit the Splash Wall. It fell apart and disappeared, but before Bonnie could turn about around, a glob of ink covered her. She turned around, rapidly shooting her Squiffer before another hit landed, causing her to splat and the tower to become covered in green ink.

"Come on up," an inkling with sharp bangs parted to reveal his eyes beamed. Yuri charged up his splatling and covered the ramp, allowing the two boys to swim up to the top. All in the while, Perry recharged his ink, and reformed by the time they arrived.

"None of the girls will be happy," the dark-skinned inkling speculated. He was right, as Geneva threw a Burst Bomb at the tower, covering the boys' feet in pink ink. Roy shot at the ground to get rid of the ink. "We better go," Yuri whispered to the tanned inkling. And with reason so. Alexis was approaching, shooting the ramp the two came up on. Yuri charged up his splatling and aimed it at the young inkling. She went down quickly, leaving a path for the two to go done to ground level.

Roy and Yuri went separate paths. While the latter headed towards their side of the stage, the former headed towards the enemy side. He had to be as stealthy as he can; the girls could catch him off guard. He had to swim back a few feet when the beam denoting a charger's aim landed on him. Within an instant, ink covered where he was. Roy reemerged from his ink and started to shoot around him. Bonnie's focus was on Roy at the moment, so his goal was to avoid her. He circled around the platform she stood on. The chase was ended when Octavia respawned and splatted him.

When Roy respawned, he noticed a Squid Beakon on one of the platforms. _Octavia must have put it there,_ he figured. A trail of pink ink shot over the skatepark as the Octobrush wielder leaped towards the Beakon. Green ink from Inigo's Carbon Roller was being flung at her, so she put the bristles to the ground and ran. Inigo ran after her, yet the Octobrush was faster. His attempts managed to destroy the Squid Beakon, which was good news for his team. Pink spotted the green side, so Roy took the opportunity to cover them back up.

He heard Perry let out a cry, and looking back at the central tower, it had become pink again as Bonnie retook her former spot. From there, she started shooting once more. Roy threw a bomb at the tower, though it only managed to land on the base before it exploded. Alexis covered the area the bomb covered right back up. A low growl emitted from Roy's throat. They were definitely losing! Even though a cloud of ink had just been unleashed above the tower, causing the girls to flee, his point still stands.

Perry returned, throwing ink onto the ramp to use the Ink Storm to his advantage. He and Inigo swam up the tower. The latter covered the base, while Perry threw ink onto the ground. The ponytailed boy swam off once his purpose was served. With that, Roy decided to push forward, hoping for no more incidents. Yet, Geneva emerged from a pink pool of ink and leaped into the air. He swam back into the trail he made just in time to survive the Splashdown, though he did not escape unscathed. Another hit or two could do him in. The long-haired inkling saw this advantage and threw a Burst Bomb that splatted him.

Once more, Roy respawned and super-jumped to Perry. He, too, was struggling as Geneva and Alexis were doing him in.

"You take Alexis," the tanned inkling told the pale boy. "I'm gonna get payback on Geneva."

Roy swung around Perry and starting shooting below him. Geneva, who was biting her lip, continued to shoot at the ramp, the ink colors switching from green to pink rapidly. It was almost times-up, he could feel it. It got to the point where he could use his special, and in an instant, a ball formed around Roy. He leaped, squishing Geneva and started to roll towards the enemy's spawn. He blew it up, covering the surrounding area in green ink. He threw a bomb at the spawn, despite no one being there. Shortly after it exploded, he heard ink being shot from behind him, and turned around to see the long-haired inkling once again, advancing on him. She managed to get a shot on him before a whistle blew, and everyone stopped.

Two black-and-white cats, Judd and Lil' Judd, appeared to survey the land. They danced for a little bit before the smaller cat pulled out a pink flag in triumph, with the larger one falling on his back.

"What?! We lost?!" Roy cried out in dismay. "But I thought we were doing so good!" All eight squids were launched back to the lobby, where a picture of a map was displayed. Though the boys had claimed the center, the girls worked on covering much of the boys' side of the map. He looked over at Yuri and Inigo. "What were you two doing?"

"I was trying to stop Octavia and Bonnie, I swear," Inigo cried. "But it's a little hard to outrun both a charger and a brush."

"Bon-Bon simply splatted me each time I aimed at her," Yuri explained. "Squiffers charge real quick, you know!"

"So…" started Bonnie, who walked up to them, charger in hand, "Does that mean I'm the MVP?"

Geneva pressed a button to display the stats. "You inked the most turf, it says here." She pointed to Bonnie's portrait. "So, you are the MVP." The only response the double-bunned inkling could give was a sweet smile.

"Alright, match is over, what now?" Roy queried as the elevator began to take them back to the base floor of the tower. He wanted to move past the defeat he just suffered.

"Why not grab something from Crusty Sean's?" Yuri suggested. "His food is my favorite."

"Right after a battle?" Octavia protested. "No thanks. Besides, his food is incredibly greasy."

"Nothing wrong with that," Alexis chimed in. "I'd eat his food for days! It's just that good!"

"I don't really see the point," argued Inigo. "His food is best right before a battle, and we just came out of one." His indigo eyes focused on Geneva. "But, I think Geneva should have the final say. She is going on vacation tomorrow, after all."

"If you ask me," the fair-skinned inkling opined, "we should go. It'll be my last meal from there for a while."

"Then it's settled," Roy announced. "We're going to the Crust Bucket…after we put away our weapons."

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Perry agreed. "It'd be weird if we all show up with our stuff."

"What about me?" Alexis chirped. "I'm not in your group; am I allowed to use that room?"

"Well…" Octavia started, lost in thought. "…You can take Geneva's place after tomorrow."

"Are you okay with that?" the younger inkling asked, turning to face the long-haired inkling.

"I am," she answered.

"K. We got that figured out," Perry remarked. "Now, let's go."

As the inklings retired their weapons to the special room, they all headed outside the tower and headed towards the Crust Bucket. The rest of the day was gleeful as everyone (except Octavia) happily ate their meals, talking and laughing. When the night sky was apparent and everyone had to go home, it was only when they woke that the pain of a friend leaving felt worse.

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**A/N: Hey, now this is a little different from what I usually do. This story's chapters are generally self-contained and slice-of-life like. However, like I mentioned in the disclaimer up top, stuff from Hero Mode and Octo Expansion will be included in here. So, there is an over-lying plot, but it might not be as evident at times. With that out of the way, feel free to leave a review! The next chapter is set to release tomorrow around this time, but after that, it will be weekly! I will try my best to reach this goal. With that out of the way, Branchwing, out!**


	2. The Splatfest Duo

_Octavia's PoV_

As Octavia exited her room with her fresh new Splatfest tee, she posed in front of Alexis, who was sitting in a chair playing a phone game. She knew her sister would not like her taste in condiments, but hey, she chose her favorite. She even bought a Seashell Bamboo Hat to have a more matching outfit.

"Alexis," she said. "I'm ready."

The red-clad inkling looked up at her older sister, and then her jaw dropped open. "You chose _Mayo_?!"

"Well, yeah. I like mayo," Via argued.

"Mayo's disgusting! It's all icky and gross and… ugh!" she groused. "Ketchup is clearly the superior one!"

"No, mayo is!"

"Ketchup!"

"Mayo!"

"Ketc-"

"Girls?" their mother called from downstairs. "Are you okay!"

"Yeah, we're fine!" Alexis called back. "It's just that Octavia likes mayo instead of ketchup!"

A sigh could be heard from their mother, but she made no other comment. Octavia shrugged and took this as the initiative to leave. She started to head down the stairs, and when her sister notice, she raced after her. They said goodbye to Mom and walked out of the townhouse. The streets were busy as fellow inklings rushed towards the square to participate in the Splatfest. Roy had texted Octavia to meet the Rainbow Squids there as well. Thus, they joined in the crowd squeezing through the streets to participate in the highly anticipated event.

Eventually, the two inklings arrived at the square. Indeed, it was crowded, as inklings everywhere partied alongside the jellyfish. Octavia looked around for her friends, and eventually spotted Perry, who was wearing his signature hat, of course, at one of the tables. The siblings ran to them, causing everyone to look behind them. To Via's dismay, the only other inkling that chose Mayo was Bonnie.

"So," Roy started, who was drinking an apple-flavored drink from the Crust Bucket, "you also chose Mayo."

"There's nothing wrong with that," the cream-clad inkling protested. "What if I like mayo? It's a Splatfest, we always choose sides."

"To be fair," Perry chimed in, leaning in his chair, "I was gonna choose Mayo, just for the joke, but it took some convincing from Yuri to choose what I actually wanted instead."

"Trust me, it was hard, but it worked," added the spiky-haired inkling.

"Well, if Via's on Mayo, then I have a partner now," Bonnie spoke up. "I was worried no one else would choose it."

"Are we still going to do the matching outfits?" asked Octavia. "Even though we're not all on Ketchup, isn't that what we agreed on."

"We were going to do matching outfits _if _we all chose the same team," Roy clarified. He finished his drink and threw it towards a trash can. It missed. "We can't do that now."

"When have we ever all been on the same team?" Perry wondered.

"Uhh, remember Early Bird vs. Night Owl last year?" Yuri pointed out. "We all chose Night Owl!"

"Right, right," he muttered. "But still, we can all be Variety Warriors!" The inkling straightened and threw his hands up in enthusiasm.

"I like it better when we're all matching," Octavia murmured quietly. She often felt that they were more coordinated when they had matching outfits. And, it was usually her to plan all of these outfits, even if Roy and Perry weren't a big fan of them at times.

"Can't have everything," Alexis teased as she stepped next to Inigo. "Let's go, Team Ketchup!"

"If you say so," the ponytailed boy said. Everyone except Bonnie got up from their chairs and raced towards the tower. Even with new hosts, inklings were always enthusiastic when a Splatfest rolled around.

Bonnie walked up to Via, hands clasped. "Well… it's just you and me now."

"Maybe we could match," the wavy-haired inkling suggested. "Sure, it'll just be the two of us, but at least we'll have style!"

Bon-Bon adjusted her glasses. "Looks like I'll have to get my contacts out, then."

"Or I can just buy a pair of retro specs and pop the lenses out."

"That's a waste of glass."

"Whatever. It's more convenient."

The inkling with a double bun let out a long sigh before saying, "Do you want matching outfits or not?"

"Well... It's not required."

"It's a yes or no question."

"I don't know, that's a hard question to answer. On one hand, I would prefer matching outfits, but on the other hand, I just want to fight already."

"I'll flip a coin, then." Bon-Bon pulled a coin out of her pocket and set in the palm of her hand. "Heads or tails?"

"Heads," the orange-eyed inkling replied. "Brains can be better than brawn, sometimes!"

"It's just luck, you know."

"I know, but I just wanted to let you know why I chose heads."

"I didn't need to, but thanks. I'll flip this now." She threw it into the air, and it landed with a cling on the ground. Octavia kneeled down to see the result, and it was on the reverse side. "Looks like it's tails."

"Does that mean we're fighting now?"

"Yes." Bonnie picked up the coin and put it back into her pocket. "Let's go."

Via smiled. "Sounds like a plan." The two started heading towards the tower, having a brief conversation along the way. It took a while, considering how many inklings were crowding into it. When they arrived, Octavia found the interface to open up the room their weapons were stored in. The panel slid open, and the two crawled down it.

"Have a flashlight?" Bonnie asked.

"No," she responded, "but it isn't too dark in here." She squinted, making out three dark shapes in the room. "Looks like the others were already here."

"But Geneva's Splattershot is still here." The inkling pushed her glasses up and walked over to the shooter and picked it up, examining it. "I wonder why she didn't take it."

"It's a vacation," Octavia queried. "Why would she need to defend herself?"

"It's still a good idea to take one just in case."

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now." She grabbed her Octobrush Nouveau. "Let's go."

"Alright." Bonnie grabbed the Classic Squiffer, and they headed upstairs. As soon as both of their feet was on the main floor, the panel slid right back over the opening. They gave a fist-bump to each other and headed to the elevator. Via leaned on the wall while waiting for more inklings to enter. A group of red-clad inklings squeezed their way into the elevator, and then a boy wearing a headband entered. The wavy-haired inkling did a head-count of them. Seven inklings, and they only needed one more.

Eventually, a girl wearing a jungle hat entered, and at last, the elevator began to descend. The familiar grate opened up beneath their feet, and everyone transformed into a squid to enter the arena. Shortly thereafter, she emerged in a strange-looking stage. Shifty Station, did Marina call it? It was nothing like she had ever seen. Soon enough, everyone started their advance. Octavia and Bonnie decided to go separate ways for their strategy.

Via went down a back alley, and jumped onto a platform. Her eyebrows raised in surprise as it started moving. She judged the best course of action was to move towards the edge of the platform to jump onto the mainland. She put the bristles to the ground and started running, stopping before she could fall. She went into squid form to hide, and once the platforms reconnected, she started swimming. She reemerged in the center and started spinning her brush around.

A cream beam formed beside her and quickly did globs of ink replace it. Via turned around to see Bonnie, aiming her Classic Squiffer at the turf. When she noticed the bronze-skinned inkling, she winked. Via winked back and turned her attention back to the main area. She put the bristles to the ground again and ran up the ramp, hoping to advance towards the enemy team. Her hopes were shattered when a dualie-wielding inkling popped out of the red ink and shot her until she was down.

She respawned at the beginning and decided to take the route Bon-Bon took the first time. Soon enough, she was met with another moving platform. She placed a Squid Beakon just before the moving part and hopped on, hiding in the ink. However, someone with a charger was splatting the ink onto the moving platform, noticing that Octavia was resting somewhere there. She reemerged and started moving, covering the red ink back up. The red beam marking the enemy's aim swung around widely, and a shot of ink fired every few seconds. _Must not be a good player_.

Octavia made her way onto the mainland again, where she found the dualie-wielding inkling shooting down below. She decided the best course of action was to attack him from behind. He might notice, but she would still have a pretty good shot at splatting him. She flicked the brush back and forth, covering the ramp back up in cream ink. She slipped through the ink and up the ramp, where she then placed the bristles down on the ground and started running. Unfortunately, the inkling with the dualies noticed her coming and rolled out of the way before her brush could hit him. He continued to rapid fire, and eventually Octavia had to retreat. She inked a path from where he was standing beforehand and jumped off the ledge.

In the meantime, Bonnie had remained undefeated. The beige-skinned inkling fired her Squiffer rapidly, covering a lot of ground. Her latest victim was an inkling wielding an Aerospray MG. She was caught in her line of fire and was splatted almost immediately. However, she didn't go unscathed. A suction bomb stuck to the side of the platform Bonnie resided on, and she ended up getting severely damaged by it. In an instant, she was gone into the ink, only ripples marking her retreating self.

The main battlefield was in complete chaos. The inkling with the charger kept aiming their shots, the dualie wielder kept firing below them, the inkling with the Aerospray returned, and an inkling with a slosher made her presence well known with her attacks on one of the moving platforms. The boy on their team—he wielded a Custom Splattershot Jr.—was having a hard time keeping up with the barrage the two girls on Team Ketchup were sending at him. To help out, Via charged towards them and slammed the slosher-wielding inkling with her Octobrush. Cream ink splatted around them as she went down, and the girl with the Aerospray had to wipe some ink off of her. The inkling with the headband took this change to splat her.

"Good job," Via complimented.

The headband inkling looked towards her and gave a nod. "Thanks," he replied, giving a friendly smile. "But now's not the time for chat."

He was right—a red beam appeared between them, and the two inklings moved out of the way. The inkling with the charger finally made himself visible, with a Splatterscope in his hand. He closed one eye to peer into the scope, the red beam indicating his aim. The boy made his way to the mainland and started to shoot at him. It was not very effective, as he went down with the inkling's next shot. The girl with the jungle hat then arrived—she held a Jet Squelcher—to take him down. She threw a flask at him, and suddenly he was surrounded with a cream mist. He moved away to avoid the toxic mist, but the girl started to shoot at him. The dualie wielder moved in to cover him. That was when Via went in.

Putting the bristles on the ground, Octavia ran up the ramp, circling around the two inklings. The charger wielder was aiming towards her, but the movement threw off his aim. Her vision started to spin a little bit as she became a little dizzy, but she had to do whatever she could to win. She lunged for him, and with a few swipes of her brush he splatted at last. With cream ink hitting the other inkling's back, he turned around to attack her instead. She swung her brush again, and the two splatted at the same time, red ink overpowering cream ink.

When she respawned, Octavia set out to find Bonnie. She quickly found her on the grate, aiming at the moving platform. The inkling with the slosher was trying to hit her.

"Go somewhere else," she commanded. "I'll take over."

"One thing first." While Via flicked globs of ink at the ground below, Bon-Bon stopped, and within a few moments, she was surrounded by a cream fog, and now, looking at her body, she was completely covered in hardened ink. _Ink Armor!_

"Booyah!" she cheered. "Thanks a lot!" The bronze-skinned inkling dropped down onto the platform and started to swing her brush around. The enemy inkling landed a hit on her, causing the ink armor to break, but while she frantically swung ink at her, Octavia started flicking her brush. Fortunately, the slosher wielder splatted, causing her to let out a sigh of relief. She painted the surrounding area, and decided to put her special weapon to use.

Octavia pulled out the Tenta Missiles Launcher and locked them on two inklings on the enemy's side. She pulled the trigger, and the missiles were sent flying towards them. She saw an explosion of cream ink in the distance, alongside a scream. She fist-pumped upon hearing it, and moved on. They had to be winning, right? She hid in the ink to recharge it, but the inkling with the Aerospray MG arrived once more. Ink spat out of it faster than anyone could ever think of, it was ridiculous. Sometimes she wished the blueprints to it were never found.

The inklings continued to duel until a whistle blew, and everyone stopped in their tracks. Octavia looked around for Judd, but alas, he had not arrived yet. It was to be expected, since it is a Splatfest, after all. Via leaned against a box while she waited for the two cats to arrive. She looked behind her to see a cream squid leaping from a platform next to her. The squid reformed into Bonnie.

"How long do you think this is gonna take?" she asked.

"I don't know. Maybe ten minutes, if we're lucky."

"Well, what will we do until then?"

"We sit here and wait." Octavia slumped to the ground and groaned. She hated waiting.

The two other inklings on their team approached them, weapons still in hand. They were disabled as a result from the match being other, but they were still good battering weapons.

"Have room for two more?" the female inkling asked.

"Of course," responded Bonnie. The two strangers sat down next to them. The boy twiddled his thumbs while the girl started up a conversation. They found out her name was Debbie, which caused them to press the name out of the boy. Eventually, he confessed his name to be Will.

"Doesn't Octavia rhyme with Octavio?" Will pointed out. "You know, that one Octarian in the history books. I heard some girl did something to that guy, too."

"You found the reason why I go by Via most of the time," she said without much enthusiasm. Being named Octavia was more than a coincidence than anything, but people still pointed out her name for the aforementioned reason. It was not something she was very proud of, so she rarely, if ever, referred to herself as Octavia. Her friends still did so either way.

He sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Must be a touchy subject, huh?" He placed a hand on his chest. "Alright, I'll make sure to call you Via if I ever see you again."

"Are you and Bonnie friends?" Debbie asked. "You look like you know each other."

"We are, actually," Bon-Bon confirmed. "Our friend group is called the Rainbow Squids."

"The Rainbow Squids… That name sounds familiar," the inkling wearing the jungle hat pondered.

"We were a group, even back when people still hung out at Inkopolis Plaza," Octavia added. "Turf wars have only helped us grow even closer."

"Oh, Inkopolis Plaza!" Debbie exclaimed. "I remember that place. I remember being so excited when I was old enough to participate in turf wars. I turned 14 a few days before the Past vs. Future Splatfest. That alone made me eligible for participation."

"…I just turned 14," Will muttered.

"Hey, guys!" a female voice called. Looking up at the platform, it was the girl with the slosher. "Judd and Lil' Judd are here!"

"Finally!" Octavia exclaimed. "It felt like forever!"

"..It's only been about five minutes," Bonnie pointed out.

"My point still stands."

The inklings looked up at one of the neon signs, where Judd and Lil' Judd were standing. Exhaustion had made its mark on the larger cat, but the little one was as energetic as ever. They began to dance, and Lil' Judd struck out a cream flag, leaving Judd to gape.

"Booyah!" Will cheered, with everyone else following him. "We won!"

Octavia and Bonnie exchanged glances. "Hey, we really did win," the former said.

"Don't get cocky," the latter started, "we could end up on a bad losing streak after this."

"We can look for the others after we leave. Maybe they'll be waiting a little bit before their next match."

"Kinda doubt it, but I guess it doesn't hurt trying."

Soon enough, they all transformed into squids and super-jumped back to the lobby. A map popped up on the interface, showing the coverage. Though most of the inklings on the opposing team were upset, one of them, the one with the charger, studied the map with curiosity.

"We were so close," he concluded. "In the end, it all came down to chance."

"Good advice, Dan," the inkling with the dualies started, "but we still didn't win."

"Well, you guys had fun, didn't you?" Debbie interrupted. "We all tried really hard to win."

"And we won instead!" Will added.

"Still," said the the girl with the Aerospray, arms crossed with a grimace across her face.

"Moving on," said Dan. He pressed a button, showing the stats. He turned his head to face the girl that just spoke. "Why am I not surprised you covered the most turf on our team?"

"Because, that's the way I roll," she argued.

"Enough with you," Octavia butted in. "I want to see how my team did." She stepped next to the inkling with the charger and looked at her own team's stats. She covered the most turf, no surprise there. She was a little surprised that Debbie did not cover much turf with her Jet Squelchers, but it did not matter. They still won either way. She stepped back. "I'm done there. Elevator, take us down to the lobby!"

Without any more complaints, the elevator immediately began to go down, and after a minute or two, the doors opened up, and the two friends stepped out. The other inklings in the elevator waved goodbye as they headed away from the elevators and into the main part of the lobby. No one was exaggerating when they said the tower was bigger in the inside—it really was. Somehow, despite all the chaos, it was able to hold thousands, maybe even a million, of inklings. This only made it harder to search for their friends, as they would all be caught up in the chaos. The two tried calling out their names to see if anyone would respond.

"I heard a Roy?" inquired an inkling with hair in a ponytail.

"Not you," Octavia grumbled, pushing him away.

"What about an Alexis?" asked an inkling with long hair.

"I'm not talking about you, either."

"Via! Bon-Bon!" called a familiar voice. "Yuri is here!" The dark-skinned inkling pushed through the crowd, giving a thumbs up. His headphones hung around his neck, revealing his ears.

"Now, that's the Yuri I'm looking for," beamed Octavia. "Glad to see you."

"Where are the others?" Bonnie immediately chimed in.

"Nice to see you all, too," Yuri greeted. He stepped out of the way, gesturing for their other friends to arrive, except for Alexis. Where was her sister? "We were waiting for Alexis to come out of a match."

"I wonder why she isn't back yet," confessed Inigo. "If you two just finished, then she should be coming out soon, too."

"Hey, maybe she's gonna do some matches in a row," Perry suggested. "Could explain it."

"But why is she out there alone in the first place?!" cried Via.

"We don't have enough room on our team to fit her in," Inigo replied.

"I told her we could swap out after a match or two," Roy added, and then sighed. "I really hope she isn't doing two…"

"It is a solid plan," Bonnie pointed out. The other inklings murmured in agreement.

"…The execution didn't go as planned," Inigo finished. "Ah, well. What can we do about it now?"

"Well, I'm changing this plan once Alexis comes out," the inkling with his hair swept to the side seethed. "This is ridiculous! It'd be even worse if she completely forgot!"

"Look on the bright side," Yuri encouraged. "You'll get what you want eventually."

Roy squeezed the handle of his Luna Blaster, and huffed as he turned his back on the group. He did not say another word. The group now stood there in awkward silence, waiting for Via's sister to arrive. She was not a fan of the silence between them, she still wanted to talk. But what was there to talk about? She was still worried about her sister, and now Roy refused to even talk to them. _Think about something else,_ a voice in her head nagged. _You could go shopping after the Splatfest is over!_ Regardless, the orange-eyed inkling still stood her ground.

A few minutes later, she heard a familiar voice call the Team Ketchup squids' names. _Alexis!_ her mind immediately thought.

"We're over here!" called Yuri.

"Finally!" burst the red-eyed inkling. "I've been waiting for so long!"

Eventually, the short-haired inkling pushed her way through the crowd and popped out in front of them, dualies still in hand. She still beamed in happiness.

"Where were you?" Roy scolded. "We've been waiting for so long!"

Alexis frowned, and lowered her arms. "I'm sorry! I thought you guys were also doing another match!"

"Ha!" Perry chortled. "I was right!" A smirk crept up the purple-eyed inkling's lips. The tanned inkling gave a glare at him, and the pasty inkling then bit his lip, avoiding his gaze.

The ponytailed inkling walked over to the younger inkling and patted her head. "Don't worry," he said, "We understand. Wanna switch out now?"

"Sure." Alexis managed a smile and stepped over to stand beside Roy. He grumbled and walked off, allowing her to take his place. The young inkling looked between the rest of the Rainbow Squids, hands shaking ever-so-slightly. She took a deep breath and then muttered something unintelligible to herself.

"Well, another match, squids?" Yuri spoke up, a big smile still on his face. The others cheered and ran off to the elevator.

Bonnie looked over at Via. "Well, should we do another match?"

"Is that even a question?! Of course!"

The two laughed, and they followed the rest of the Rainbow Squids to the elevator for their next match.

* * *

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed this chapter! The next one will come out next Sunday, and all chapters will release every Sunday for a while. I have nothing else to say, so Branchwing, out!**


	3. Feedback

**Pearl and Marina's Mayo vs. Ketchup result dialogue comes from the official game. I do not own it.**

* * *

_Yuri's PoV_

The day after the Splatfest, all the Rainbow Squids gathered around their usual table, anxiously looking at the giant screen plastered onto the tower, waiting for the next Off the Hook broadcast. They already returned their shirts and reverted back to their usual colors. Now, it was only a matter of time. The entirety of Inkopolis was watching, awaiting the results of the Mayo vs. Ketchup Splatfest. Soon enough, the familiar intro of the idols came on, and everyone in the square cheered.

"Y'all know what time it is!" Pearl introduced.

"It's Off the Hook, coming at you _live_ from Inkopolis Square," Marina concluded.

The transition played, and the short inkling said, "Marina! Before you announce the stages, why don't you share the breaking news?"

"Breaking news? What did you break this time?"

"I didn't break anything! I was talking about the Splatfest results!" The crowd roared as soon as Pearl finished.

"_Ooh_! The Splatfest results are in!"

"Aight, first let's see which team was the most popular."

"Let's find out!" The two made some noise as numbers flashed on the screen, and then cheered once it displayed the results. It was pretty obvious that Ketchup was the more popular of the two.

"Why am I not surprised?" Roy deadpanned.

"Aw, man…" Pearl whined.

"Yes..."

"All right, all right, all right… Now for the part that matters."

"Yeah, popularity isn't everything."

"Time to see which team won the most battles!"

"Please please please…!" The two made some noise again, and cheered when the results came on screen. Mayo had won both solo and team.

"_What?!_" Roy cried out in dismay. Looking around, several other inklings apparently had the same reaction. "But we were on such a great winning streak!"

"So were we," Octavia argued.

"_Shhh,_ be quiet!" Bonnie hushed. "I want to listen!"

"Are you kidding me?!" Pearl cried.

"Wow!" Marina gasped.

"OK, y'all. It's time…"

"The final results!"

"The winner of this Splatfest is…" Marina audibly gulped. They cheered as the final results came on screen, and the pale inkling cheered, "Ayo! It's Mayo!"

"Ugh…"

"It's mayo all day, yo! They know we don't play, yo! Best stay out my Headspace 'cause I'm coming with that Cray Flow!" she rapped. In the corner of his eye, Yuri noticed Perry clasp his hands together and stare up at the screen with wonder. He wasn't surprised; the singer was a huge inspiration for the purple-haired inkling's music.

"Wow. A rap song about mayonnaise. I'm sure that'll tear up the charts." Marina did not look too terribly thrilled with Team Mayo's win; it was obvious.

"Shout out to Team Mayo! We did it, y'all!"

"If you participated in the Splatfest, your prizes are waiting in the Square!"

After that, the duo went on to announce the current stages, but that was when the Rainbow Squids stopped paying attention. And by extension, it was also when everyone else in the square stopped paying attention. From this point on, everyone was talking about the results.

"I still can't believe it!" Roy continued to complain. "Ketchup was way more popular, how did Mayo win?!"

"Clearly, mayo is the superior condiment," Via bragged, a smirk coming on her face.

"No, it's ketchup!" Alexis complained, "We've been over this, Via!"

"Well, if mayo won, then it really is the superior condiment!" her sister argued.

"It's still ketchup!"

"Mayo!"

"Ketchup!"

"Mayo!"

"Hey guys, stop." Inigo stood up and threw his hands out. "Mayo won, and that's the end of it."

"Besides, maybe your team will win next time!" Yuri added.

"And," Perry started. "I need to get to the studio."

"Please don't tell me you're gonna stalk Pearl…" Roy moaned. "I knew one day it would happen."

"No! Of course not!" the purple-haired inkling objected. "My dad rented out a portion of it so I can record songs! It's for today only." Inspired by the Squid Sisters, Perry decided that his life-long goal was to become a famous musician. Admittedly, he was not real good at it, as most of his songs sounded the same, but nonetheless, Yuri still supported it. Music connoisseur or not, he was still his friend. The encouragement always seemed to cheer up Perry, and the yellow-haired inkling was glad to see him that way.

"Really?!" Alexis gasped. "That's so fresh!"

"I know, right?" he effused. "I can't believe I'm gonna be in the same building as Pearl! …And record some new music with the latest technology, of course. Anyone wanna come with me?"

"I'll come," Yuri offered. "That's what friends are for, right?"

"I don't know, I kinda want to search for jobs today," Roy vacillated. He appeared to have calmed down from the earlier outcry. "I got a work permit a while back, and my mom wants me to do something about it."

"Why not Starfish Drinks?" Bonnie suggested. "It's my favorite coffee shop."

"Isn't that a little far from the square?" Octavia asked.

"There's one near here," the beige-skinned inkling replied, pointing eastward, past the tower. "It's a little far from your house, sure, but it's still very close to the square."

"Great idea, Bon-Bon!" Roy exclaimed. "I'll go over there now!" The red-haired inkling hopped out of his chair and ran off, past the studio, deeper into the city of Inkopolis.

"I swear, one day that ego's gonna get the better of him…" Via muttered. She cleared her throat. "I was planning on doing a few ranked matches. Anyone wanna come?"

"I've never played a ranked battle before," Alexis admitted. "What is it like?"

"Well, there's a few different modes you can do," Inigo chimed in. "Tower Control, Rainmaker, and Splat Zones!"

"I've heard rumors that they're planning on adding a new mode to the mix," Yuri added.

"Well, regardless, that's all the modes," the fair-skinned inkling concluded. "You can try one with Via, if you'd like?"

"Why just Via?" the short-haired inkling asked. "Why can't you come along?"

"Eh, Grizzco's open," he replied. "I'm gonna work a shift there."

"Oh, can I come along?" Bonnie asked the ponytailed inkling. "I love doing Salmon Runs!"

"Of course." His eyes flashed between the remaining inklings. "Anyone else wanna come along?"

"No thanks," Yuri declined. He threw an arm around Perry. "I'm gonna stick with Perry."

"Aw, thanks man," the inkling wearing a king flip mesh stated. "I knew I could count on ya."

"Well, then it's settled," Octavia concluded. "Me and Alexis will go to the tower, Inigo and Bonnie will go to Grizzco's, and Yuri and Perry will go to the study."

"Right!" everyone agreed.

"Well, cheers!" The wavy-haired inkling tipped her hat and headed off towards the tower with her sister.

"Bye." Bonnie and Inigo headed towards the alleyway Grizzco's resided in.

"Bye-bye!" the pale-skinned inkling shouted, waving goodbye to the departing inklings. He started walking in the direction of the study. "Come on, Yuri! Let's go!"

The dark-skinned inkling caught up with Perry. "Hey, betcha I can get to the studio first!"

"Oh, no, I will!" He started to run, with Yuri following after him. The headphones brought the spiky-haired inkling down a little bit, but he could manage. Being a little more long-legged, he was able to run faster than his friend, and eventually surpassed him. Behind him, he heard a suppressed cry.

By the time they arrived at the studio's door, Yuri was panting from the sprint. He leaned against the wall, breathing heavily, while Perry caught up with him. When he arrived, he bent over, grabbing his knees.

"Told ya." Yuri stuck his tongue out and winked.

"No fair!" he cried. "You're taller!"

"But look on the bright side. We're here now, aren't we?"

"…I guess." Perry narrowed his eyes at the other inkling. "I'm still gonna hold that against ya."

"Well, you'll catch up eventually." The purple-haired inkling let out a _hmph_, and without another word, the two inklings entered the studio.

The pale inkling pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. "The recording room is in Room 123, according to this. There's gonna be a guy there that'll let us in after he sees the pass." The dark-skinned inkling nodded, and the two traversed the hallway. In Room 101, where Off the Hook's broadcast happened, several inklings were showing their VIP pass to go in and talk to them. Sometimes, Yuri wished his parents allowed him to buy one. He's always wanted to meet the members of Off the Hook, but the passes were limited. They were a little pricy, too.

After pushing through several people, the crowd eventually thinned, and the two inklings were able to navigate the studio pretty quickly. Using the signs, they eventually found a sign labeled '123' hanging over a door. Next to the door was an inkling in a suit and sunglasses. They walked up to him, and Perry presented his pass. The guard nodded, and they were allowed in. Once the door shut, the purple-haired inkling opened the laptop sitting on the table. He opened up a recording program, and then plugged it into the mixing console.

"So, what do I have to do?" asked Yuri. "I've never been in a recording studio before."

"Have you used this?" countered Perry, who pointed to the console.

"Once." He gave a small chuckle. "It didn't turn out so good last time I used it."

"Hmm…" The purple-haired ink fiddled around with the settings of the console, and once he was done, he gestured towards it. "Don't touch it, and it'll be fine."

"Sounds great," the spiky-haired inkling concluded. "Now, get in there and give it your all!"

"One last thing—give me the thumbs up when I'm ready to go, alright?" He leaned towards the computer for a moment to move the cursor towards the red record button. "Press this to start. And don't start until I'm in there."

"I know, I know. I've recorded your songs before, ya know."

"Hey, a refresher always helps!" Perry opened the door to the booth, and winked. "Alright, time to go." He closed the door and walked to the center of the booth, picking up the microphone and holding it with both hands. He gave a smile to his friend, though Yuri guessed he was already getting impatient. Quickly, he clicked the record button, and some beats began to play. He was not surprised; Perry used this general beat in almost every one of his songs, to the point where Yuri was surprised when the beat was different. He gave a thumbs up to the purple inkling, and he began to sing.

"Yo, Pearl, this one goes to you," he started. The dark-skinned inkling bit his tongue to suppress a laugh. _A rap song about Pearl. Man, I wonder what she'll think once this is uploaded on SplatCloud._

"And sure, it'll go to me, too. / Everyone knows you're so small, / But that doesn't stop me from being so tall. / You're 4'9" and I'm 5'5", / Maybe we can flock to a hive." The part about Perry's height was probably true. For his age, he was short, only surpassing Bonnie and Alexis in height. Considering how short Pearl was, her height was probably accurate as well.

"You are like a work of art, / Only vandalism can tear you apart." Now, that was a weird line, Yuri had to admit. "But who would vandalize you? / Everybody loves you. / Except the haters, / They can go laters." _Is 'laters' even a word?_ He did not want to find out at this moment.

"Now I know you're 21, / And I'm 16, / But I know you're the one, / Even if I watch you from a screen!" Upon the declaration that Pearl was 21 years old, Yuri pulled out his phone to search up the idol on Inkipedia for the sole purpose of finding out her age and height. Turns out, he was correct. _Hmm, he really does do his research!_ Yuri complimented silently. The beat started to pick up a little bit. "Oh, if you only knew what I wanna do, / You can probably guess, can't you?" Now, the beat started to really pick up. _The chorus, _the yellow-haired inkling presumed.

"You're my fantasy, / My ecstasy, / Everything I dream is of you! / Would you believe it too? / Don't be scared, / You can be bared!" That line alone increased the awkwardness in the room. _Imagine if Pearl walked into here. She'd be so weirded out,_ Yuri thought. He tried to suppress a laugh at the funny thought, but he couldn't help but giggle. Perry seemed to glare upon seeing him laugh, and immediately did the spiky-haired squid go back to a poker face. "You know, Pearl? / You can be my everything, girl! / It's to say how much I love you! / Even if you don't love me too. / But in the end, / I have a heart to tend."

"When I first saw you, / I knew that it was true, / It was love, wasn't it? / The love bug has bit. / Maybe you say it's an obsession, / I don't want you to be a possession." Octavia had often called Perry's love for Pearl an obsession. _Maybe he took that for inspiration for this line_, Yuri pondered. "You earned your name. / The waves came, / To bless Inkopolis with its pearl. / It really is a whirl! / Marina is lucky, / to have a friend who isn't yucky!"

Perry began to sing the bridge again, followed by the chorus. Yuri leaned back in his chair. He still did not really like this song, but he liked the devotion he had towards making a love song to one of the biggest idols in Inkopolis. Despite his wild dreams, he was still his friend. He would support him, no matter what he did. Unless he kills someone; that would be when their relationship would sour. Right now, the song's tune was rather generic, and the purple-haired inkling was admittedly not the best singer, but he still put heart into his lyrics. That is what Yuri thought made him stand out from all of the other SplatCloud rappers.

There was a pause in his words, leaving just the trap music to play, but soon enough, Perry started to sing again. "With your pearly-white hair, / and your willingness to dare, / I'm surprised some people compare you to Marie, / Whose only similarity is the snark she can carry." _Some die-hard fans of the Squid Sisters won't like that,_ Yuri thought. He then thought of one boy who went to their school, who had a Squid Sisters pin on his backpack and blasted their music all the time. "But why compare? / Who gives a care? / Haters can hate on Off the Hook, / But you won't see the cook! / And either way, / I love you, K? / Nothin' can change that, / Not even Judd the cat!"

Perry finished off his song with only the chorus, and at the end, he let out a "booyah," and dropped his microphone. To Yuri, that marked the end of the song, so he hit the stop button on the computer. Excited, the inkling with bangs burst out of the booth and ran over to the computer. Grinning, he said, "Hey, hey, can I see it?"

"Yeah." Yuri pushed the laptop over to him, and he proceeded to press the play button. The song he had just sung played back to the two, and Perry closed his eyes and hummed along. Yuri leaned back in his chair, managing to muster a smile. He could not share his friend's enthusiasm for the song, unfortunately. Perry proceeded to play the song over and over again, editing it ever-so-slightly to make sure it was perfect. When he asked how it sounded, the dark-skinned inkling simply said it was fine.

During a later rep of the song, Yuri could make out some voices coming in their direction under the loud trap music. He could not make out any words, but he hoped that they did not hear the song. It would be too awkward if anyone came in during a playback of it. Yet, to his misfortune, the door suddenly swung open. The two inklings turned their heads to look at the newcomers, right during the bridge, and immediately did Perry's face turn as red as ketchup.

Standing in the doorway was Pearl herself, who had an eyebrow raised. When the chorus started, she bit her lip. Contrary to her usual peppy nature, the idol stayed silent during the whole song. Marina peeked into the room to see what was going on. She, too, did not really say anything in regards to the song. Next to them was the guard outside of Room 123.

Once the song was over, with a frantic expression, Perry began to stutter, "I-I-I…"

Pearl held up a hand. "No need to explain. I get these all the time."

While the purple-haired inkling turned away in embarrassment, Yuri spoke up for his friend. "But what do you think of it? Do you like it?"

"I dunno," she simply replied, and shrugged. "Lemme guess. You gonna upload it to SplatCloud?"

"He… probably will." The yellow-haired inkling pushed back his chair to look at Perry. "Are you?" He did not respond, hiding his face with his hands. Due to this, he refocused his yellow eyes on the idol. "Well, I'll assume he will."

"I'd hate to chime in," interrupted Marina. "But, does your friend have any other songs about Pearlie?"

Yuri paused, searching his memory for every time he has helped Perry record a song. "He wrote a song about Off the Hook," he recalled. "But no, there's no others specifically about Pearl. At least, I don't think so." The pale inkling, of course, did not weigh in on the matter.

The funny-looking inkling made a small sound of disappointment, but her fellow idol continued on the conversation. "Well… Hey, Perry, That's ya name, isn't it?" Perry lifted his head and turned around in this seat to look at Pearl. "That song wasn't that bad. Better than some other songs."

"Really?" he murmured.

"Trust me. Some kids just don't have any energy in their songs, y'know?" the short inkling encouraged. Marina made a sound of agreement.

He took off his king flip mesh, revealing the rest of his hair, and gave a small smile. "…Thanks." The blush on his face seemed to have faded ever-so-slightly. "You fine with me uploading it?"

"Well, yeah!" Pearl responded. "Y'know I don't really look at SplatCloud itself. Only the songs emailed to me."

Yuri was not exactly relieved by her statement, but at least he was assured that the idol would not come across it again. _One time's enough,_ he thought. It was bad enough that she heard it the first time. "Alright, then," the yellow-haired inkling started, standing up. "Let's export the song to the flash drive!"

"There's a flash drive?" puzzled Perry, his attention immediately snapping back to his friend. Yuri pointed to a pink flash drive connected to the computer. It was covered in SquidForce stickers. "Oh, I didn't notice that!"

The two inklings huddled around the laptop to finish the process of making a song. Once it was saved to the flash drive, the pale-skinned inkling pulled it out of the piece of technology. He put it in his pocket and started to head towards the door. "Well, I'm leaving. Bye, everyone!" Off the Hook stepped out of the doorway to let him past, and Yuri quickly followed him out of the room.

When they exited the studio, Perry plopped down onto the bench and groaned. He put his cap back on to hide his face. Yuri put his hand on his chin, scratching it.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"That. Went. Horribly." Perry slouched. "Pearl, out of all people, came in while it was playing. _Pearl_. Do ya understand how bad that is for me?!"

"Look on the bright side," the other inkling tried to encourage. "She didn't think it was bad."

"That won't look good on my resume."

"Wait, you're searching for a record company?"

"Well, yeah. All musicians have to do something to make themselves famous."

Yuri paused, and eventually said, "Good point. Still, though. Pearl liked your song, and that should be all that matters, right?" He smirked. "I liked it myself, too." The last sentence was a lie, but he didn't want Perry getting any more upset than he already is. Sugar-coating things was Yuri's specialty.

"Whatever." The purple-haired inkling got up from his seat and started to head away from the square. "I'm going home. Bye."

"Want me to come with you?"

"No."

The dark-skinned inkling frowned, and plopped onto his friend's former seat. Yet, his mouth lifted into a smile again when he realized something. _He's gonna upload anyways. Even if he doesn't want to tell me. _He leaned back against the bench, and threw his hands behind his head. _Guess we'll have to wait and see_.

* * *

**A/N: Another chapter, done! See, I told you it would come out on a Sunday! Now, the next chapter is when we're going to get into Hero Mode stuff. Considering it was incredibly easy to write, since I was referencing a walkthrough for most of it, it's possible that there will be two chapters next weekend instead of one! That way, people who don't want to read about it will get something else to read instead. Now, I say maybe because I will probably get a new computer for my birthday (which is Wednesday), so I will have to transfer the files on this laptop to that one if I do get one. That might eat up a little time. Either way, I'll see where I'm at with chapter 5 Saturday morning, and that will decide whenever there will be two chapters or not. With that out of the way, Branchwing, out!**


	4. Adventure, Start!

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**Pearl's and Marina's dialogue, as well as most of Marie's dialogue, is taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

A week after the release of Perry's latest song, an urgent broadcast suddenly came on the giant screen situated on the tower. It was an odd time, as the latest stages were announced only a few minutes ago. Everyone looked at each other with confusion. What was going on?

"Uh… Why is our producer freaking out?" Pearl asked. "Read the teleprompter, Marina!"

"Huh? Let's see here…" Marina started. She scratched the turntable, and an image came on screen. "THIS JUST IN! The Great Zapfish has… disappeared?!"

The announcement came with gasps of shock and fear, mostly from the younger inklings. The most that affected Alexis was anxiety. From school, she learned that the Great Zapfish powered all of Inkopolis. What happened if it disappeared?

Octavia must have noticed her shaking, as she put a hand on her shoulder. The young inkling looked up at her older sister. "Don't worry," she tried to calm her. "This happened a few years ago. It came back within a month or two, no problem."

"But what if it doesn't?!" she cried. "Inkopolis will go dark!"

"Wait, like, for reals?!" Pearl exclaimed from the screen. "I feel like I've heard this story somewhere before…" Strangely enough, her statement echoed the start of the sisters' conversation.

"It's like Via said," Perry added. "It'll come back. Just gotta give it time."

"Maybe it went on vacation or something," Yuri joked. Everyone laughed at his joke except Alexis. The bronze-skinned inkling frowned. She hated being left out of the loop, especially when the Rainbow Squids treated her as if she was Geneva. She just didn't get it. _Why is no one else worried?!_ said the frantic thought that popped into Alexis's head.

"There's more!" Marina added. She scratched the turntables once more, and an image of a black-haired inkling popped up on the mini-screen. "Pop superstar Callie of the Squid Sisters has gone missing!" Again, more gasps, more than the previous announcement, were garnered by the revelation.

"Not Callie!" Bonnie cried. "Oh, I hope Geneva doesn't hear about this…"

"NOOOO! NOT CALLIE!" Pearl cried. "This is terrible! Do something, Marina!"

"Uh… OK, I'll put together a search part-"

"Whatever." The short inkling suddenly interrupted. "I'm sure they'll turn up at some point. In other news…"

"But shouldn't we form a search party or someth-" The screen suddenly cut, with Pearl announcing that they ran out of the time. With this, Off the Hook did their outro, and the screen resumed to be flashing images of various media.

"Okay, I was fine with the Great Zapfish going missing… _twice_," Roy started, a determined look sparkling in his red eyes, "but Callie going missing? That's _too _far."

"Okay, can you guys explain to me why you're so calm when the source of all power goes missing, but freak out when some random pop star goes missing?" Alexis chimed in.

"Oh, Callie isn't just any old pop star," the tanned inkling pointed out. "She's _the _pop star. One of the world-famous Squid Sisters!"

"Again, she's a _pop star_," the inkling with chin-length hair deadpanned. "Still didn't answer my question."

"It came back the first time around," Inigo commented. "We don't really have a reason to be worried."

"I don't remember the first time around," Alexis protested. "Please, I'd really like to see the report for the first time?"

"Give me a sec." The indigo-haired inkling pulled out his fittingly-indigo phone, and after a few minutes, he showed the screen to the young inkling. It was a SplatTube video, and he began to play it. It was eerily similar to Off the Hook's recent broadcast, but it instead featured a black-haired inkling and a grey-haired inkling. "You see, this," he said while pointing to the black-haired inkling, "is Callie, and this," he continued while pointing to the other inkling, "is Marie."

"Okay…" She raised an eyebrow at the whole ordeal. "What did you guys think the first time the Great Zapfish went missing."

"Trust me, we were freaking out," Via replied. "Especially since it was around the time we first formed the Rainbow Squids."

"Have I mentioned that Geneva's learning how to be an electrician?" Yuri added. "She started an apprenticeship about the time the Great Zapfish came back."

"Is that related to her vacation?" Alexis asked.

"Oh, no!" Perry was the next inkling to speak up. "She just went because she wanted to. Doubt it has anything to do with zapfish."

"Back to the Great Zapfish," Via snapped. Everyone went quiet as soon as she spoke, and in a gentler tone, she continued. "Like I said, you really shouldn't be worried. It'll come back."

"And if doesn't…?" Alexis probed.

"Oh, that's when Inkopolis would really shut down. Everyone would be freaking out." The bronze-skinned inkling tried to suppress a giggle. "But, it shouldn't get to that point. Callie, on the other hand…"

"She has to come back some time!" Roy interrupted. "Oh, I really hope Marina goes through with those search parties."'

The young inkling clenched her fist. Would they stop talking about idols for just one second?! She did not care for any of them. The only reason why she knew the members of Off the Hook's names was because of their constant, frequent appearance on the big screen on Deca Tower. Her eyebrows furrowed and her lip curled, revealing part of her pearly-white teeth.

"Alright, I've had enough," Alexis snapped with such ferocity that even Via was taken aback. "If you squids are just gonna talk about Callie all day, then I'm leaving." She turned her back on them and started walking away from their usual table. "Bye, bye. See you tomorrow."

"Alexis!" Octavia yelled. "Come back here!"

The orange-haired inkling didn't even bother answering. She continued walking towards the tower, but all of a sudden, she noticed something unusual in the corner of her eyes. She turned her head around to look back at the Rainbow Squids. Immediately after her departure, they all went back to looking at their phones. Typical. She refocused her attention on the strange sight. A woman holding a green Brella stood on top of a grate. From what else she could see, the inkling wore a kimono, but the umbrella hid the rest of her from sight. Alexis took a few steps towards her. The mysterious inkling looked over her shoulder, and, with a small gasp, she suddenly dissolved through the grate in a blob of lime green ink.

Alexis walked over to the grate, peering into it. It seemed to be an ordinary grate, disregarding the fact that an inkling just went through it. She sat on it, and pulled her knees to her chest. What was she going to do now? The mysterious inkling showed no signs of coming back, though perhaps it had something to do with Alexis's presence on the grate. She stood up, and looked into it again. She looked back at her sister's friends. They still remained at their usual table. Her orange eyes refocused on the grate. _I suppose no one would notice if I go investigate_. And with that, she let herself go into squid form, and she slipped through the grate.

She travelled through it, and the inkling popped out on the steel base of a grassy, floating island. A few feet in front of her lied a small pink-and-green shack, complete with lanterns and a symbol on a curtain. The mysterious inkling from earlier stood with her back turned to Alexis, but now she could get a better look at her. Her hair was tipped green, though the majority of it was a pale grey, almost white. Oddly enough, she looked familiar…

"Hmm… The Octarians…" muttered the woman. Alexis raised an eyebrow. Octarians? Weren't those the creatures mentioned in her history textbooks? The inkling turned around, revealing her golden eyes, like stars. "Hey… You showed up!" she exclaimed, the inkling giving a small smile.

"Yeah… What about it?" asked the bronze-skinned inkling, scratching her head.

"As soon as I saw you aimlessly wandering around the square, I knew you were the one," the other inkling replied. "I'm Marie. I know you're probably a bit starstruck, but I need you to get over it."

"What?" This was getting confusing. Marie was the name of the other Squid Sister, right?

"Yes, I'm THAT Marie," she clarified, doing a hand gesture to prove her point. "You know… from the Squid Sisters." Alexis just gave the other inkling a blank, yet confused, stare. When no reaction was garnered, she gasped, "You've never heard of me? For eel?"

"I mean, my sister and her friends talk about you a lot," the orange-haired inkling clarified. "But me? Not really."

The tips of Marie's mouth pointed downwards ever-so-slightly, and then she said, "Well, you obviously aren't very cultured, but you'll have to do."

"What do you mean, I'll have to do?!"

"See, I've got a little… thing I need some help with. By now you've heard that the Great Zapfish that powers Inkopolis Square is missing."

"I know!" Alexis exclaimed. "But everyone I've talked to seemed more concerned with your sister-"

"Cousin," Marie interrupted to clarify.

"Whatever. Anyways, I'm pretty sick of squids talking about Callie. And it's only been like, what, ten minutes since that was announced."

The idol paused and let out a sigh of exasperation, but she continued her explanation afterwards. "Well, it's not just missing—it's been squidnapped by the Octarian menace!" The inkling with chin-length hair gasped. "How do I know this?" Alexis cursed silently. She was just about to ask this question! "On the surface, I may just look like an absurdly talented pop star… But in truth… I'm Agent 2 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, a secret society of heroes who save the world from Octarians!"

"My sister's friend dressed up as a hero for Halloween once," Alexis interrupted. "She has a picture of herself and her friends dressed up from an old Splatfest years ago in her room."

"Trust me, we aren't exactly the heroes you're thinking of," Marie clarified. "We don't have superpowers or anything, just ourselves." She cleared her throat. "Anyways, I've been trying to keep an eye on the Octarians in my downtime, but I'm a busy girl." She muttered something quietly, and then she made a bold declaration: "I need YOU to go get the Great Zapfish back from those slimy Octarians!"

"_What?!_" The cry was so loud, she bet that even Geneva could hear it, wherever she was. "Me, getting the Great Zapfish?! There's no way I can do that!"

"Of course you can do it," Marie encouraged. "Agent 3 confessed she had those same fears to us a little while after she saved the Great Zapfish the first time around. And I'll admit—her skill is amazing. If she could do it, I'm sure you can, too." She smiled. "So, what do you say? Are you in?" Alexis looked around nervously. Whoever Agent 3 was had mad skill, according to Marie's praise. She could never live up to her expectations. She wasn't sure what to do. Eventually, the older inkling just stated, "I'll take your awkward silence as a yes."

The inkling went back inside her shack, and she quickly came out with a set of clothes, alongside a shooter. "Welcome aboard!" she greeted, presenting the clothes and shooter to Alexis. Not sure what to say, she simply took the clothes and weapon from her. "You are now Agent 4 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon. I even bought you a brand-new Hero Suit as a signing bonus. Go try it on."

Alexis gave a simple nod, and she went into the shack to change. She examined herself in the mirror present there. The headset felt a little heavy on her head, but she did like the hoodie she was wearing. It was only the boots that bothered her. They looked kind of ugly, in her opinion. Though Marie's earlier statement might prove otherwise, the outfit did remind her of the hero costume Geneva wore for Halloween one year. The bronze-skinned inkling then picked up the weapon lying on the dresser and came out of the shack. She tried to manage a toothy smile.

"And look at that!" the other inkling exclaimed. "It fits like a glove!" She muttered something, and then she declared, "Now, let's go tear those Octarians from limb from limb from limb…" The idol trailing off garnered another blank stare from Alexis. Once she realized this, she finished, "Well… you get the picture."

"So…" the bronze-skinned inkling started, tapping her foot on the ground. "How will I do this?"

"The entrances of the Octarian realm are invisible," explained Marie. "You'll have to ink them to reveal them."

"Seriously?!" she cried. "I just have to throw ink around until something pops up?"

"You'll have a faint idea where they are once you're near one," the fair-skinned inkling replied. "They're kind of like giant boxes—just ink them until it breaks, er, pops up."

Alexis nodded and started walking across the bridge. In the main area, parts of the land were covered in a magenta ink. She ignored them for now.

"Remember," called Marie. "If you see anything weird-looking, blast it with ink!" The first thing Alexis noticed was a kettle of some sorts, so she walked up to it and began to ink it with the shooter. She was used to having only one weapon to shoot with, so this was kind of a new experience for her. "Not that, silly," the other inkling in the area shouted. "The Boss Kettle only opens when you've retrieved all the zapfish in the area!"

Alexis groaned, and heaved herself over the pot. She looked around, and noticed something glinting a few feet in front of her. She walked up the ramp, searching for it. Yet, she couldn't find it. Then, Marie's reminder to ink anything funny-looking popped into her head. She put a foot out, which was stopped by something invisible. Determined that this was the location, she began shooting it with ink. A creaking sound was heard as the ink was suddenly thrown off of it to reveal a metal grate, shaped like a miniature version of the Boss Kettle. Deducing that this was somewhere Octarians resided, she slipped into the grate.

She reappeared in a rather strange area, the sun shining in her eyes. Sprawled out in front of her was a path of teal ink. She looked down at her spawn. It, too, was teal. Assuming this was the color she changed into when she arrived here, she stepped into the ink. Nothing bad happened.

"Swim through that ink," the voice of Marie said. Alexis jumped, searching for the source of the sound. "We're communicating through radio," she explained. "Though, I can also see what you're doing. Makes things helpful."

"...Okay…" Alexis slipped into the form of a squid, swimming to the end of the platform. She was revealed when she landed on a swirling teal circle, and felt herself prepare to super jump. She then felt herself flying through the air, and she landed on a smaller, teal circle.

"Cover enemy ink with your ink to move through it," explained Marie.

"Uh, I kind of already know that," she pointed out, "but thanks, anyways." The bronze-skinned inkling started to cover the magenta ink from above with her own. With that, her companion went silent. She inked the area, collecting the orange orbs floating above it. When she got past the wall, she saw a strange creature. When it noticed her, a blob of magenta ink shot out of its hose. She gasped and hid behind a wall. "…What is that?"

"That, my friend, is an octarian," the other inkling explained. "An Octotrooper, to be specific. They're pretty easy to take down, don't worry."

With a little hesitation, Alexis stepped out from behind the wall and began shooting the Octarian. Within a few moments, it burst into teal ink. The machinery it was riding on crashed to the ground and disappeared.

"Good. Now, jump through that squid ring." She did as she was asked, and swam down the trail of teal ink left there. She arrived in an open area, where another Octotrooper, though with a shield covering its face, stood in the center of it. "Not a lot of cover here. Hide in the ink and move slowly so it doesn't see you. Though, I don't see anywhere go can go from here. It might be best to throw a bomb to distract that shielded slob, so you can splat him from behind."

_I have bombs? _Alexis reemerged from the ink, and searched her pockets for the aforementioned the bombs. She pulled out a teal bomb and threw it behind the Octarian, and then hid in the ink quickly. It turned around, confused, but the agent took the chance to strike it from behind. When it exploded, another swirling circle was revealed.

"Ah, a launchpad," Marie said. "Better jump on it."

Alexis swam into the launchpad, and she was launched upward and landed on another glowing circle. Directly in front of her was a grate, though she could see magenta ink sprawling out on the platform below. She stepped onto the grate and looked below her. Three Octotroopers were gathering beneath it. She started shooting one of them, and it splatted quite quickly. The other two noticed this and sent two blobs of ink towards her. She quickly shot one of the remaining two, and stepped out of the way of the blob. Unfortunately, it grazed her shoulder, but that didn't stop her from splatting the final Octotrooper.

"Hmm… Not bad," Marie complimented. Alexis slipped through the grate and swam through the ink present. She popped out at the end, where there were a few crates. She shot them, and more of the orange orbs flew towards her. She swung around the corner, where another Octarian was waiting for her. She splatted it and pushed forward through the mass of crates she now faced. She let out a squeak of surprise when she saw the last group of crates. It was shaped like a pyramid, with an Octotrooper on top of each box. They all began to shoot at her. Alexis inked a small spot to hide in, raising confusion in the five present.

"Remember, you have bombs!" the inkling on the radio reminded. _Oh, yeah!_ She reemerged from the ink and pulled out another teal bomb. The creatures, however, noticed her and began to shoot again. Luckily, the bomb exploded, taking most of them down. She finished off the ones that were left, and a launchpad appeared where they were. "Woo! I'm impressed," commented Marie, "Now, hop onto that launchpad."

She super-jumped over another building and landed on the glowing circle on the top. Past the wall was a big, puffed-up creature with blotches of teal ink on it. It was connected to something she couldn't quite make out. She broke the boxes to investigate.

"Hit that balloon fish with some ink to pop it," she instructed. So, that's what it was. She held up her shooter and shot it. It quickly exploded, covering the area like a giant bomb. She smiled. _Convenient._ Past it were more Octarians. They were guarding a silver, cylindrical object with an orange logo. "Ah, a vault. We'll need to find a key to open that." Alexis splatted the two Octotroopers present and took a sharp right. She slipped through the grate to find a mass of boxes. She broke a few of them, only to reveal more Octotroopers. She gasped and began shooting wildly.

Panic really began to rise when her tank ran out of ink. She quickly submerged herself in the ink, hoping that the Octarians would forget about her. However, as soon as they forgot, their hoses began spraying magenta ink on the ground below them. Soon, she was becoming cornered. When she had no more space to go, she began shooting the remaining Octarians, and the area became covered in teal ink again. She turned back around her to take down the rest of the boxes. In one of the crates, she found a key.

"There's the key. Now, take it, and use it to open the vault," Marie instructed. She did so and swam back down to the vault. She used the key to open it, and Alexis found a launch pad in its place. "You're a natural," the other inkling complimented. "Onward!"

The inkling with chin-length hair jumped off the higher platform and found a few boxes blocking her path. She broke them, and suddenly, a suitcase emerged from one of the boxes.

"You want that armor. Trust me." Alexis picked it up, and suddenly she found more weight on her body. She walked towards the group of Octarians, and Marie advised, "If you're hurt or overwhelmed, retreat and catch your breath. That's combat 101!"

"No need to," the bronze-skinned inkling boasted. "I can do this." She threw a bomb towards the group of Octarians, and it exploded, covering them in ink. She finished them off, and she moved towards the end of the dip to shoot the rest of the Octarians. She moved up the ramp, and she jumped when two Octarians suddenly appeared in a burst of magenta ink.

"Don't forget to strafe and backstep while you're shooting," the other inkling reminded her. Alexis groaned. She was getting a little tired of hearing Marie's advice. She splatted the two Octotroopers that popped up, garnering an audible gasp from the inkling on the radio. "You… You're still alive!" she exclaimed in awe. "This crazy plan might work after all." Alexis stepped on the circle and dissolved herself into the teal ink present. She swam up to a shielded Octotrooper who was just sitting there. Recalling the advice given earlier, she popped out of the ink and threw a bomb over the creature's head. It turned around, confused, giving her the chance to splat it from behind.

"Well done," Marie said. Alexis inked the wall and climbed up it to access the launchpad. It was a weird position for it to be in, but she could work with it. As soon as she touched it, she launched to what felt like the other side of the world. She jumped onto the narrow platform when the other inkling said, "Don't look down." She paused. "Or do. Whatever." She crossed the platform to find her path blocked by some crates. She broke them, and positioned herself on the grate where she could go through the squid rings at the same time she was falling down. She slipped into her squid form, and down she went.

Alexis turned the corner when she was met with another shielded Octotrooper. Both them became started as they shooted at each other. When she noticed some of the sticky ink got on her body, she slipped back into the ink and swam away. She rested for a moment and swung around the wall again afterwards. The Octarian had started to cover the area with its own ink again.

"Remember: bombs are your best friend," Marie reminded.

"I know, I know." She reemerged from the ink and threw a bomb behind the creature before hiding again. Luckily enough, it turned around, allowing her to shoot it in the back to splat it.

"Stay alert," commented the inkling on the radio. "You never know what might be on the other side of the wall." Alexis rested again to recharge her ink tank, and then she pressed forward to break the crates. She shot a balloon fish that stood in the middle of a wider area, which burst to reveal some hiding Octotroopers. "AMBUSH!" Marie then cried. "Cook these clowns!"

Alexis and the Octotroopers dueled, teal and magenta ink flinging back and forth. She used the balloon fish to her advantage, blasting it once it regenerated it. The ink blast was so strong that it managed to knock the shield off the shielded Octotrooper. With this advantage, she splatted it, and moved on to the launchpad behind the balloon fish. She launched and landed on yet another glowing circle, and broke the small crates. One contained a can, while the other contained armor.

"Tenta Missiles!" Marie exclaimed as soon as she picked up the can. "You can activate them and set the target on those slobs below you. Then, fire!"

"Will do." She broke the can and a pair of launchers appeared in her hands. Considering that she usually used her Splat Dualies to fight, using these were a piece of cake. She locked her targets, and fired. The missiles shot into the air, and soon enough they crashed down on the Octotroopers. They all exploded in teal ink, and one of them left behind a key. Alexis jumped down to the ground and picked up the key. She used it on the vault, which opened to reveal yet another set of Tenta Missiles.

"Well done," the other inkling said. "From what I can see, you probably want to use the second can of Tenta Missiles."

"Really?" She turned around to see more Octarians on the platform below. "Oh…" She broke the second can to obtain another pair of launchers. "There really is a lot of them here!"

Marie chuckled. "You are in one of the Octarians' realms. What do you expect?" There was a moment of silence before she said, "Now, cook these Octarians!" Alexis took a few steps back to ensure all of them were targeted by the Tenta Missiles. She fired them, and the Octarians started to run around frantically as the missiles headed towards them, to no avail. They all exploded into teal ink, and three keys were left behind. "Now we're cookin'!"

The agent hopped down to the platform below and picked up the keys. She used them to open up each vault. In two of them were red-orange cans containing a lot of the orange orbs she had seen floating around. The final one contained a launchpad. Once she got the cans, she swam over to the swirling circle, and she launched into the sky. She landed on a small platform, with a yellow creature with whiskers a few feet in front of her. It was surrounded by a yellow, glowing barrier. _A zapfish!_

"There it is! Bust in and grab that zapfish!" Marie exclaimed. "…By inking it, by the way. Just in case you didn't know."

Alexis nodded and started shooting the barrier. It burst, and the zapfish let out a raspy, yet high, cry. She put the shooter behind her back afterwards. Excited, she leaped towards it and grabbed it, holding it tight while it squirmed around.

"I got it!" she exclaimed. "Take that, Octarians!"

"Great," the other inkling said. A launchpad spawned from behind the zapfish's holding place. "You'll want to take that launchpad back out. It'll take you back up to the surface."

Alexis nodded, still holding the zapfish. She walked over to it and turned into squid form. She launched up towards the sky, the zapfish screaming all while doing so. She popped out high above the grate, which was open to accommodate for the zapfish not being made out of ink. As soon as they were above ground, the grate closed, and Alexis landed cleanly on it.

Turning around, she noticed Marie walking up to her, Brella still in hand. "And there it is," she said, smiling.

"So…" The bronze-skinned inkling looked down at the zapfish in her hands. "What do I do with it?"

"We've been sending rescued zapfish back to the power plant where the electricians manage them," the older inkling explained. "We send them anonymously, of course."

"Solid plan." She gently passed the zapfish on to the other inkling. "I suppose you can handle it from here."

"I can." Marie started walking back to her shack. "Great work, Agent 4," she then started. "Inkopolis may not be doomed after all."

"Um… my name's Alexis," she pointed out. "I've never said that earlier, but now's better than never."

She looked over her shoulder again, and shrugged. "Whatever. You're Agent 4 here, not Alexis. By the way, you did the first job perfectly." She smiled. "Up for another one?"

"I don't know…" Alexis scratched her head. "My sister might be worried sick about me. How long has it been?"

"Since you first showed up? Not very long," Marie replied. "A half-hour, if I had to guess."

"It's only been a half-hour?!" The bronze-skinned inkling plopped down on the now-stickered grate. "So much has happened since then!"

"I don't blame you. But, the only thing now is to keep pushing forward. Inkopolis is counting on you, Agent 4."

The inkling stood up, and gave a nod. She pulled out the shooter again, and continued the search for the next grate.

* * *

**A/N: And, here it is! If you were interested in reading it, I hoped you enjoyed it. In regards to the computer situation-the new one is due to arrive Tuesday. In regards to the next chapter, it is finished, but I feel like it's too... short? It's rather calm compared to the last few chapters. I'll probably tweak it over the week to try to add more to it. However, I would still need to transfer the files over to my new computer once I get it, which would eat up a day. So, hopefully you are fine with just this. Branchwing, out!**


	5. The Coffee Shop

_Bonnie's PoV_

"Are you sure there's a Starfish Drinks near the square?" asked Octavia. "We've been walking this way for _hours_."

"Via, it's only been five minutes," Bonnie replied. "Roy was able to find it after five minutes of running."

"Ugh, if you say so," she grumbled. Through the busy streets, the two inklings meandered through the crowd, still in search for the coffee shop. Bonnie was pretty positive that she would be able to find it. She has visited it many times, ever since everyone moved to the square to hang out.

A few minutes later, the bitter scent of coffee hit her nose, and she tapped on her friend's shoulder. "I believe we're here," she announced as soon as Via turned around to face her. She looked up at the sign above the glass entryway. In white bold letters, outlined in black, the words read 'Starfish Drinks'. Separating the two words was the well-known logo—a green circle with a stylized starfish inside.

"Hey, you're right!" Octavia exclaimed.

"See," she started, "that didn't take long at all."

They entered Starfish Drinks and then the line. It was the afternoon, and the lunch rush was already coming in. The line was long, as to be expected, and baristas everywhere were running back and forth to make the drinks everyone asked for. To past the time, Bonnie and Via had a rather simple chat, but soon enough, even Bonnie found her patience waning. She looked behind her. Many more people had come in after them, and the line would only get longer. Bonnie frowned, but decided to focus on the menu. They were getting pretty close to ordering by now.

Eventually, a cashier said, "I can help who's next."

"Finally!" Octavia exulted. She grabbed the blue-haired inkling's hand and ran over to that cashier. An amused expression came across the older woman's face. "Yes, yes, I'd like a black coffee, please!"

"And I'd like some iced tea," requested Bonnie.

"Alright." The cashier pressed some buttons, and a number came up on the screen above the cash register. "That will be 1,050 coins."

"I'll pay," the girl with glasses whispered to her friend. She pulled out her wallet, then the requested cash, and slid all the coins over to the cashier. "Here you go."

"Thank you. What's your name, sweetie?" the cashier asked.

"Bonnie," she replied.

"Okay, Bonnie," she started, "We'll call you once the drinks are ready."

"Sounds good." The two inklings went to over to the wall closest to the pick-up area, where they leaned against it.

"Wonder how long this will take," Octavia mused.

"It shouldn't take as long as the line," Bonnie commented, pointing to a group of inklings rushing back and forth between machinery. "They've got plenty of baristas." _And, Roy might have already gotten a job here._ She smiled. He would hate it if he was here right now.

After roughly ten minutes, one of the inklings at the counter called for Bonnie, sticking a ticket to the top of a white cup with the Starfish Drinks logo. The blue-haired inkling told her friend to wait, and walked up to the pick-up to grab their drinks. The other inkling wished her well, and she returned to Via. She gave her the steaming cup, and she promptly ripped off the ticket and stuck it onto the wet cup. The two teenage inklings sat down at a table to chat.

Once she set down her drink, Bonnie ripped off the ticket and read it. "They spelled my name 'Bonny'," she said blankly.

Octavia snorted. "This is Starfish Drinks, what do you expect? They always mess up names!"

The beige-skinned inkling sipped her iced tea. "I guess you're right."

"So… You think telling Roy to get a job here was a good idea?"

"I don't know," she admitted. "He's always been kind of a sports guy. But." Bonnie paused. "It doesn't hurt for him to try."

"He seemed interested last time I talked to him about it," the bronze-skinned inkling commented. She pulled out her phone to show him the latest conversation they had via text. Basically, it detailed all the ways Roy could mess around with the flow of customers coming in and out of Starfish Drinks, such as purposefully misspelling their names. That is, if he does decide to work here.

"That's actually really interesting," Bonnie said in regards to the texts. "Nothing about long lines?"

"Nothing. He hasn't even mentioned it."

"Maybe he came here when traffic was light," she joked, and then giggled at her own remark.

"Maybe," Octavia repeated. They paused to drink, but then the other inkling's eyes lit up, causing her to wave her hand to get her friend's attention. "Oh, oh! Want to see this new outfit I came up with?"

"Sure," she replied.

"Alright, give me a sec." The wavy-haired inkling set her coffee down on the table to look through her phone. She smiled upon finding it, and turned the phone around to show the contents of the screen to Bonnie. It depicted a dark-skinned inkling wearing a sun dress with floral patterns, alongside a sunflower pin stuck through her hair. She wore ivory sandals. "Pretty, right?"

Bon-Bon took the phone and held it in her hands, examining the image on the screen. "Right," she agreed. She looked up to face Via's orange eyes. "How did you make this? It looks 2D."

"A dress-up game," she replied. "I downloaded it a few days ago, and it's so much fun!"

"_What?!_" someone suddenly cried. The two inklings stopped their conversation abruptly, looking between each other. Bonnie then looked behind her to see what was going on. A male inkling slammed his hands against the counter, lips curled into a snarl at another employee. "My name is _not_ Sigh-mund! It's _Simon_!"

"Woah, woah, sorry there," the employee tried to calm him down. He had a side ponytail. "Just an honest mistake. Trust me."

"An _honest mistake_?!" Simon retorted. "You Starfish Drinks baristas mess up my name all the time! Seriously! My name's so simple. _Simon_. S-I-M-O-N."

"I'm sorry, sir, but-" The older inkling slapped the employee. His cheek seemed to glow red now. "Ow!" Octavia and Bonnie exchanged glances with each either. _This is not going to end well_, Bonnie thought. The other inkling touched his hand to his headset and yelled, "Security!"

At that moment, two police officers rushed into the coffee shop. They grabbed Simon, one arm each, and began dragging him out. All in the while, the older inkling was screaming expletives, and he threw his drink to the ground, and immediately did brown liquid spill. The drink tumbled onto a child's foot. The young inkling grabbed his bare foot and began to cry. His mother scooped him up in his arms.

"Now look at what he's done!" the mother cried. "Little Johnny's foot is starting to swell thanks to that coffee!" She ducked under the stanchion and stormed out of the coffee shop, while everyone simply watched in awe at the scene. Once it was done and over with, business went back to normal, and everyone kept chatting and ordering drinks as usual.

Via's orange eyes looked over at Bon-Bon. "What now?" she asked, taking a sip of her coffee in the process.

She lifted herself up from her seat, eyes drifting towards the doorway. "I think we should leave." _I don't want to hear anything like that for the next month_, she silently added. The whole scene that just happened had been a headache for her.

"Good idea." The two inklings stood up and exited the coffee shop, spilling them back onto the streets. They made their way back to the square. By the time they got there, they had finished their drinks, so they threw the cups into a trash can. Octavia leaned on the wall of a shop, while Bonnie held her hands, watching her.

"Do you want to do a turf war?" she asked.

"Do you wanna see the dress-up game I was talking about?" she countered.

"Actually, I do." Bon-Bon went by her friend's side, now getting a look at her phone screen. It was on the loading screen of some game. "Is that it?"

"Yeah." The game finished loading, so the bronze-skinned inkling held out the screen in front of them. "You see, if you press this button…" She pressed the aforementioned button, bringing up a screen with an inkling model, who was only wearing a bikini. "…You can dress up this inkling! Pretty fresh, right?" The blue-haired inkling simply nodded in agreement as Via went on to demonstrate.

Afterwards, Bonnie asked, "…Now can we do a turf war? Please?"

"Sure."

And thus, the two girls walked off towards the tower to play.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. I promise Bonnie will get a longer one next time. Well, I don't have anything else to say here, so Branchwing, out!**


	6. Running With Memories

**Some of Mr. Grizz's dialogue is taken from Splatoon 2.**

* * *

_Inigo's PoV_

Two inklings held their hands tightly as they walked along the boardwalk. Seagulls flew around, picking away at litter on the beach. However, Geneva and Inigo were contempt just staying on the wooden platform bordering the beach. Inigo held a cone of chocolate ice cream in his hands, and he licked it while the green-haired inkling was talking.

"You really know salmonids in-and-out, huh?" Geneva commented.

"Yeah," the indigo-haired inkling replied. "My grandpa likes to tell me stories of his salmonid hunts back in his younger days." He shrugged. "My family owns a big fishing boat, too, if that helps."

"Like I said, I've only seen their eggs—and even then, I didn't know where they came from until you started telling me about them."

"Where did you see salmonid eggs, again?"

"Oh, umm… I saw a few lying about while taking care of a zapfish."

"Oh, yeah." He chuckled. "I forgot." Inigo ate the last of the cone, and threw the wrapping towards a trash can. It missed.

Geneva noticed this, and she tore herself out his hand to go pick it up. "And remember, don't litter." She tossed it into the trash can. Smiles crossed their faces, and they burst out in laughter. "Let's stop here," she said finally.

Inigo agreed, and then the other inkling grabbed his hand and they ran towards the fencing. Holding hands once more, they leaned against it, gazing out into the cerulean sea. The boy let go of her hand to throw his arm around her. They pressed together, side by side, with huge smiles on their face. They took a moment to look at each other. With a silent agreement, the two of them closed their eyes and leaned towards each other. Excitement coursed through Inigo's body. This was it!

…What Inigo got was a mouthful of cotton.

When he opened up his eyes, he found himself face-to-face with white. He pulled himself upwards, and the pillow fell to the mattress. Realizing what had happened, the inkling tried to spit out the stuffy taste to no avail. In the meanwhile, rays of sunlight shone through the window of his room, highlighting the deep indigo blanket of his bed. He threw it off of him and stood up now on the grey carpet. He did a few stretches and got dressed.

As he got ready for the day, disappointment lingered in his mind. He shouldn't be surprised; it always lingered after those kind of dreams. The ones where he still had a girlfriend. He shivered. His attempts to get another one have so far have been unsuccessful. Will he never date again? To Inigo, this was a horrifying thought. But, he had to remain optimistic.

He walked out of the townhouse and entered the streets of Inkopolis. It was not too terribly crowded today, but it still just felt like a normal. His phone rang, so he pulled it out. An advertisement for Grizzco's popped up as a notification. Inigo pumped his fist. He could do a Salmon Run today! But first, he would have to tell his friends about it. They probably knew by now, though. Regardless, as he walked in the direction of the square, he was bent over his phone, texting away.

By the time he reached the square, he had gotten some responses back from the people he expected—Octavia, Yuri, and Bonnie. They usually escorted him on a Salmon Run. He lifted his head, looking around for his friends. He then saw Roy at the Rainbow Squids' usual table. He was on his phone as usual. Inigo straightened and walked over to him.

"Hey," he greeted.

The boy with his hair swept to the side focused his red eyes on the indigo inkling. "Hey." He adjusted his bandana and said, "I got your text about Salmon Runs."

"Are you interested?" he asked.

"You know I'm not," he grumbled. "I don't wanna be around fish all day."

"It's not _all_ day. Only a half hour at minimum."

"I thought we agreed to do some ranked battles today?"

"You said this afternoon. It's morning right now."

Roy let out a deep sigh. "Alright. But if you don't come back here by three o'clock, I'm kicking your butt."

"Don't worry." Inigo smiled. "I'll make sure of it."

The indigo-haired inkling headed off towards Grizzco's, happy to see that the bars usually blocking the entrance were missing at the moment. Taking a deep breath, he stepped inside the shady building. Neon signs flickered, as if the place was affected by the Great Zapfish's disappearance. The air felt suffocating, yet at the same time, it was comforting. He glanced over at the familiar statue resting on top of the cooler.

The radio attached to the statue buzzed to life, and a voice said, "Right on time, kid. I've got work for ya."

"Can you wait a sec, Mr. Grizz?" Inigo asked. "I've got friends coming over." The statue did not respond. "Yeah? Good, good." The indigo-haired inkling sat down on a steel beam, and pulled out his phone. Via texted him that she was on her way, but nothing else. To occupy his time, he decided to play a phone game.

After a while, all three of his friends entered the building at the same time. Inigo glanced up from his screen, and smiled.

"Hey there, Inigo!" Yuri greeted. "Ready for a Salmon Run?"

"Yep." The fair-skinned inkling put his phone in his pocket and walked over to the statue. "Alright, Mr. Grizz. Get us on the boat."

"Will do." An elevator suddenly popped up in the middle of the room. The four inklings crowded into it, and once they did, the door shut, leaving them alone in the darkness.

"You know," Octavia started, "the elevators here are very much like the elevators in the towers. Both Inkopolis and Deca."

"Except dark," Bonnie added.

Whirring could be heard as the elevator went down and down, and then it came to an abrupt stop, a hissing sound following it. The floor opened up beneath them to reveal a grate. The inkling slipped into his squid form to slide through, and down he went. He swam through the pipe, and then he popped out at the oceanfront, a trail of indigo ink following him as he launched towards the boat. The four reformed on the boat's deck.

"Well," started Yuri, stretching his arms out, "time to get dressed." The dark-skinned inkling took off his headphones. "I really don't want to ruin these."

Octavia walked over to the clothesline, which had four identical suits hung on it. "I've never really liked these," she said, taking one of them. "They're so… not fresh."

"Well, someone's gotta do the gross jobs," Yuri remarked. "Even they can be fun!"

"Right," Via agreed. "It's practically the only reason why I even do Salmon Runs—it's fun."

"Let's just get dressed," Bonnie interrupted, taking one of the suits. Without another word, she walked inside the ship. Without any arguments, the other inklings proceeded to do so as well. Inigo entered a dressing room and put on the suit. He put his everyday clothes on the rail and walked back out. He threw his hands over the railing, looking out at the sea. Luckily, none of his friends got seasick easily. Except Perry.

When Yuri came out onto the deck, he threw his arms out and stretched. "This breeze feels so fresh, 'ey, Inigo?"

"Yeah…" A frown slipped onto his face. His dream last night still unnerved him.

The dark-skinned inkling seemed to have noticed this. "Is something wrong?" he asked, taking a moment to adjust his hat afterwards.

The indigo-haired inkling did not say anything initially, but he then shook his head. "No," he replied. "I was just thinking of something."

"Lemme guess, Geneva?"

His eyes widened, with a slight blush coming across his face. "How—I-I mean, no!"

"Come on…" A playful smile came across Yuri's face. "You're lying."

"Alright, alright, you're right." Inigo slumped. "I am thinking about Geneva."

"…Any particular reason why?"

"It's nothing, I swear. Just a dream I had last night."

"You're just gonna ignore it?" Inigo nodded, and the other inkling shrugged. "…I guess if that works for you, then so be it."

At that moment, he heard footsteps approaching them. They turned around to see Bonnie coming out onto the deck, sunlight reflecting on her blue eyes. She most definitely put on contacts, since glasses were considered 'a safety hazard' out on salmonid grounds.

"Hey," she greeted. "I'm ready."

"In case you're wondering," Inigo started, trying to muster a smile, "we aren't there yet."

"I figured," the beige-skinned inkling replied. "It usually gets darker by the time we get to…" She turned around to look at the paper plastered onto the entrance below deck, detailing the job. "…The Spawning Grounds."

"That applies to anywhere," the fair-skinned inkling replied. "No one knows exactly why, but being in the presence of salmonids has a strange effect of making it look like it is sunset, or sometimes, night."

"I never would have guessed," the girl said unenthusiastically. In a lighter tone, she then explained, "Via's still getting dressed." In a whisper, she added, "I bet she's putting on make-up."

_Why bother? _Inigo wanted to point out. _It's gonna get ruined anyways._ He explained this to his orange-haired friend the first time they did a Salmon Run together, which was a few weeks ago. He did not know how well she listened. He chose not to say anything in response to Bon-Bon's remark. There was really no need to.

"Alright, then," Yuri simply responded, leaning on the railing. "We'll just have to wait."

The indigo-haired inkling looked up at the sky, which was getting ever-so darker. "…We might not have a lot of time left."

More time passed, and the Spawning Grounds started to come within view of the three inklings. Via had still not come out yet, but by the time the land was completely ingulfed in a sunset, Octavia came bursting outside, her hat sloppily put on.

"Sorry!" she apologized. "I got lost."

The three other inklings looked at each other, skeptical about her excuse, but then they all simply shrugged. "It's fine," Inigo then spoke up. "You're right on time, too." Anticipating a launch into the island, they all took the time to change their ink color to a deep purple.

"There," Bon-Bon said. "Now we're all prepared." The four changed into their squid forms, preparing to super jump. And within an instant, purple streams of ink raced across the sky. They landed into a splotch of ink on the ground of the Spawning Grounds, and hid momentarily. When Inigo reemerged, he found himself holding a Splattershot Pro.

"Interesting…" the ponytailed inkling muttered. He looked over at his friends.

"Hey, Via," Yuri started, walking over to the aforementioned inkling, "have any tips on how to use this thing?" He held out an Inkbrush, which he assumed he got for this wave.

"Well, you have to swing it to spread ink," she explained. At that moment, the water began to rise. Just what they needed. "Just holding it does not work. At all. Neither if you just roll it along on the ground."

The dark-skinned inkling gave a nervous smile. "Well… I dunno how this is gonna go, but I'll give it a try."

"I don't think this is gonna go too well," Bonnie interrupted, swinging an Aerospray MG. "Aerosprays do not have a range at all!"

"Not with that attitude, it won't," Yuri encouraged, putting his hand on her shoulder. "You just gotta give it your all."

At that moment, a boat horn blew, signaling the arrival of a boss salmonid. "Guys, we really have to go, now!" Inigo commanded. He shot some ink at the ground to swim around in.

"Right!" All of the inklings went their separate ways, each inking their own paths. Inigo stopped at the edge of the grate, looking around. No salmonids were in sight.

"This way!" Octavia cried. "I could really use some help here!"

Inigo ran back on the ground and slipped into his squid form. He could not ignore a coworker in need, especially when that coworker is his friend. He arrived at the other side of the island to see salmonids jumping onto the platforms, all armed with frying pans. The bronze-skinned inkling backed up as she charged her splatling, and soon enough, ink pellets shot out of it, hitting some of the salmonids. Power eggs flew towards her as each one went down. Bonnie was backing her up, with her Aerospray firing at a rapid pace. Yuri, on the other hand, was chasing after the boss, a Drizzler.

The fair-skinned inkling emerged and looked up at the sky. An armored torpedo flew overhead, so he began to shoot it. Luckily, his aim was true, and the torpedo went down, disappearing into the water. This gave his friend the chance to swing his Inkbrush back and forth at the boss salmonid to finish it off. Soon enough, it burst into three golden eggs.

"Booyah!" Yuri cried. He turned to face the other inklings. "Hey, we got some eggs over here!"

Via gasped and started running over to the platform the spiky-haired inkling was standing on. "Coming!"

"What abou-" Before Bon-Bon could finish her sentence, she tripped and fell into the water. She struggled before she was dragged down to the ocean floor in a cloud of purple. Luckily, she reemerged, but Inigo was more focused on gathering the eggs at the moment. "Help!" she then cried.

"I'll get her," Yuri declared. He turned to the other living inklings. "You two need to get the eggs up there…and find out how many we need, too."

Another horn sounded. "Another boss is coming," the fair-skinned inkling realized. "We're gonna have to act fast."

"That's no problem." She saluted to the dark-skinned inkling and ran off, with Inigo following her soon after. The two inklings made their way up to the basket and plopped the eggs in. They looked at the egg count on the base of the basket. "We need ten eggs," Via read. "That isn't so bad."

"We have two right now, and we'll get three more once that dies," Inigo followed up, pointing over to a Steelhead approaching them.

Octavia looked at it, and smirked. "That's no problem; I have a splatling." She held down the trigger, allowing it to charge up. As they advanced, the boy shot at incoming lesser salmonids. Quickly, though, he had to hide back into the ink. _Curse this high-ink consumption. No wonder Geneva never liked these._

The Steelhead stop, and it grunted, the green bomb appearing on its head. Via let go of the trigger, and a stream of ink flew out of the Heavy Splatling. The bomb became covered in more and more purple ink until it exploded, causing the boss salmonid to go down with it.

"Booyah!" the orange-eyed inkling cheered. "Now, we just gotta get to the eggs."

Inigo emerged from the ink and began shooting again. He heard footsteps behind him, assuming them to be Bonnie and Yuri. When there was an opening, he swooped in to grab an egg and quickly snapped back to the main platform. By the time he reemerged, he heard yet another horn. Salmonids were pouring onto the mainland, followed by a Steel Eel. He chucked his egg into the basket and squeezed behind it. It passed by him, making Inigo wonder who it was targeting.

"Watch out!" he called. "Steel Eel coming!"

"What are you standing there for?" Octavia called back. "Shoot it!" She looked behind her as the boss salmonid swooped around the bend, heading towards her. It ran over Yuri in the process.

"I wish I could," he replied, "but these salmonids really want sailor calamari right now." The ponytailed inkling was firing at the creatures coming his way. When he ran out of ink, he had no choice but to jump down onto lower ground. In the form of a squid, he plopped into the ink and swam. He flinched as he swam through the toxic green ink, forcing himself to reemerge. He coughed, looking behind him. He swung around and shot at the incoming salmonids.

Another horn sounded, much to Inigo's dismay. He heard the whirling of a jet overhead, tipping him off to the presence of a Flyfish. He swam up to the basket, hearing his friends' cries for help. Pulling out a bomb, he threw it towards Yuri and Bonnie, both splatted. He hid in the ink to recharge his tank, but he heard the explosion, causing him to let out a sigh of relief. Another horn sounded. When Inigo reemerged, the first thing he noticed was the Steel Eel falling apart.

"I did it!" Bonnie cheered. "I splatted a boss with this thing!"

Figuring that he should probably get over there, Inigo slipped back into the ink and made his way over to where they were fighting. He had to get through a few salmonids in the process, but overall, it went pretty well. That is, until a green beam of ink suddenly pierced him. He let out a squeak as he started running away from the beam. But it was no use; he was a Stinger's target. Soon enough, he splatted. A few moments later, he reemerged in his life preserver.

"Help!" he then cried, inching towards the other inklings. Yuri was already running over towards the Stinger, while Bonnie walked over to him and shot him. He felt himself heal, quickly standing on his own two feet again. He thanked her and went their separate ways. The beam of ink suddenly ceased once Yuri brought it down, so Inigo made his location his next destination. He maneuvered himself over there as best as he could, shooting down salmonids when they came to attack him. He snatched one of the golden eggs and started to head back over to the basket.

Another horn meant another boss. Yet another Steel Eel emerged from the water, and now, its target was Inigo. It slinked towards him, just as he made it to the basket. He let out a cry of alarm and jumped down to the grate. To his dismay, a stream of green ink was falling next to him, and everything around him was just a little target. He looked up. The Flyfish, with two launchers still intact, was firing at his friends. The indigo-eyed inkling so badly wanted to help, but he was becoming cornered.

"Hold on, Inigo!" Via called. "I'm coming!" As the Steel Eel passed her, she ran towards the Flyfish and pulled out a bomb. She threw it towards the open launcher, but it just barely missed. She growled and took one of the packages from her hat. She teared it, and in her hands appeared a bomb launcher. She started throwing them rapidly, all aiming for the Flyfish's open baskets. However, they closed before they got in, and the Flyfish floated around once more.

Inigo, on the other hand, was running low on ink by now. The Steel Eel was inching closer and closer by the second, and he did not know how much longer he'll last. Suddenly, he got an idea. What if he jumped in the water? When he was revived, he should have a full ink tank. Regardless, he was not too entirely sure if that was a good idea. Before he could make a decision, the boss salmonid rammed into him, knocking him into the water.

"Seriously?!" the wavy-haired inkling cried as he went under. When Inigo reemerged onto the grate, he saw the Flyfish crash down to the ground. Another fog horn sounded, much to his dismay.

Bonnie ran over to him with her Aerospray MG and quickly sprayed him with it. Inigo thanked her and immediately grabbed an egg dropped from the Flyfish. He ran back up to the basket when he saw a lure bobbing around in the ink. Maws. Of course, another boss would try to attack him as soon as he recovered. He tried his best to outrun it, managing to put the egg into the basket at the very least.

A glowing green ring hovered in the ink, giving him the cue to throw a bomb there. He pulled out one, filled with deep violet ink, and threw it into the circle. The Maws launched, and it swallowed the bomb. Within an instant, it exploded in purple ink, leaving behind three golden eggs. Bonnie returned from the shore to plop an egg into the basket, when she noticed other eggs lying on the ground. She looked at the ponytailed inkling and gave a thumbs-up. Inigo simply nodded and continued on with the fight.

Two more screams were heard as Yuri and Octavia were splatted. Salmonids flocked them beforehand, and now the horde set their sights on the remaining two.

"Do we have enough eggs?" Inigo asked the girl with double bun, worry laced within his voice. She gave a frantic nod as a responsible. "Well, we have to get to them now."

"There can't be that much time left," Bonnie argued. "We can just wait it out here."

A look of dismay crossed his face, and he threw out his hands. "Do you see how many salmonids there are?! They'll get us before the clock runs out!" Inigo turned around to see a Cohock swinging its pan at him. It hit the side of his head, causing him to explode in green ink.

"Umm…" Inigo heard the rapid fire of the Aerospray MG nearby, and then suddenly, it ceased. The salmonids returned to the ocean, and all the inklings found themselves launching through the air again. They landed in a spawner on the boat, and quickly, all of them reemerged from the ink with no injuries what-so-ever.

"Ooh, crew wipe," Mr. Grizz said through the radio attached to their gear. "Let's see how many golden eggs ya got." Everyone looked at each other nervously, without saying anything. Even Yuri seemed a little upheaved from the failure of the Salmon Run. "13? Not terrible," the raspy voice finally concluded. Bonnie gave out an audible sigh of relief.

"I'm not really surprised," Via admitted, breaking the silence. "When that swarm of salmonids came on land, I knew we were doomed."

"Okay, we lost, but… can we try again?" Yuri asked. "I really want to win this time!"

"I kinda can't," Inigo replied. "I promised Roy that I would be back by three. And it's…" The fair-skinned inkling walked over to a clock hanging over the poster detailing the shifts. "…Not three, but still, it takes a while to get here."

"What are you gonna do with him?" the bronze-skinned inkling asked.

"Ranked battles," he responded. "I think it's supposed to be Rainmaker, then." Rainmaker was Inigo's favorite ranked mode, and the one he was best at. There was just something so satisfying about putting the Rainmaker on the hill, locking it in place.

"Rainmaker?!" Octavia cried. "I'm terrible at it!"

"I like Rainmaker," Bonnie muttered.

"It's not my favorite, but at least I don't suck at it," Yuri commented.

"Rainmaker's my best," Inigo added. _Which was a little weird, since it was Geneva's worst. She'd never play with me when that came up._

"So, your point is, you'd like to go back?" the beige-skinned inkling inquired.

"Yeah," he clarified. "I don't want Roy to get mad at me." He shuddered. The last time that happened, Inigo ended up having to get a new phone.

"Understandable," she said. Bon-Bon touched her radio set and then said, "Mr. Grizz, bring us back to Inkopolis."

"Got it." The boat then turned around from the island and started its course back to the place where it all started.

"Guess I'll have to change back," Octavia muttered.

"You don't have to," Inigo pointed out. "Only I have to."

"Well, that Salmon Run was embarrassing. I don't feel like doing another one today."

"Aw, Via…" Yuri started, throwing an arm around the wavy-haired inkling. "You don't need to get yourself down because of it."

"It was still a complete disaster!" she argued, turning into her squid form to escape her friend's grasp. Once she landed on the ground, she slinked away from him, and once she was out of his reach, she transformed back and ran inside the boat. Everyone simply stared at the display.

Eventually, Bonnie just shrugged. "Eh, what can I say? That's Via for ya."

"Well, I'm gonna change. See ya in a little bit," Inigo announced.

The rest of the boat ride went along pretty smoothly, with no interruptions. Once it arrived back at Inkopolis, Inigo and Octavia said their goodbyes to their friends, and they agreed to go look for Roy. The red-haired inkling happily let Via come along, and together, the three of them played Rainmaker with little to no interruptions.

For a day that initially started bad, it turned around, in Inigo's mind.

* * *

**A/N: Hello! Hoped you liked this chapter. If you did, maybe leave a review. I'll admit, this chapter got progressively harder to write, as I was hit with a bunch of ideas for future chapters... chapters that won't happen for a longgg while. But in the end, I managed to finish. Stay tuned for the next chapter, and Branchwing, out!**


	7. Inkbrush Graffiti

_Perry's PoV_

Perry sat with his legs crossed on his bed, staring intensely at the computer screen. Inklings dashed across the video being played, all of them wielding Inkbrushes. Despite usually using sloshers, something was just so appealing about any type of brush. Ink was spread across the land with a few swipes, and it was pretty effective at taking out enemies, too. What he liked most, however, was how someone using a brush could simply start rolling along, running so quickly.

"Booyah!" The purple-haired inkling pumped a fist as the inkling the video focused on ambushed another inkling. Her target let out a screech as he quickly met his demise. Quickly, the girl in the video ran away, and hid again. The rest of the video was pretty predictable—the girl kept ambushing other squids, and soon enough, her team won. All in the while, Perry had a big smile on his face.

_Now I gotta get some money!_ he deduced. He closed his laptop, jumped off his bed, and rushed out of his room. He ran down the stairs, calling for his father. He found him at a coffee table, drinking coffee and reading the newspaper.

"Dad!" Perry called. "I need some money!"

His dad put the newspaper down and wiped the coffee off his beard. "How much?" he asked.

"I dunno, how much is an Inkbrush?"

The older inkling raised an eyebrow, but then he replied, "…I'll just give you one of my debit cards." He pulled a wallet out of his pocket, then pulling out a silver card out of it. "This should have about 500,000G worth of cash left on it. The PIN's 2019."

"K, thanks." The inkling with the king flip mesh swiped the debit card out of his father's hand and started marching towards the door. "See ya later."

"No problem. And, have a nice day!"

He didn't reply to that statement. Once he stepped outside of the mansion, he called for a taxi to take him to downtown Inkopolis. One came, and he used his own money, the money in his wallet, to pay for it. Some time passed, and the taxi dropped him off closer to the square. The driver said she couldn't take him any farther, to his dismay. Regardless, Perry strode through the streets of the city, all in pursuit of Inkopolis Square.

By noon, he arrived at the square, the sun high in the sky. He looked around. None of his other friends were here, it seemed. He shrugged. He'll find them later. Right now, he wanted to buy his very own Inkbrush. Immediately, Perry dashed into Ammo Knights.

"Hey, Sheldon, where are ya?" he called as soon as he step foot into the shop. "I'm lookin' for a weapon, here!"

"Coming!" Soon enough, the horseshoe crab came running out into the main area, his apron freshly stained with grease. "Sorry for the wait, I was working on a very special piece of tech for someone to use," he explained, adjusting his binoculars. Then, Sheldon greeted, "Hello! What are you looking for today?"

"An Inkbrush," the purple-haired inkling replied, standing tall.

"What kind? I have standard Inkbrushes, of course, but I do have a few extra Inkbrush Nouveaus and Permanent Inkbrushes in the back. I would need to modify their sets for you, though," Sheldon started. "The Inkbrush, by the way, is a super-light brush…" Perry did not bother to listen in on his explanations of each kind of Inkbrush. He found them boring. "…Sir? Are you still there?"

"Oh, oh, yeah," Perry muttered, shaking his head and wiping a little drool off of his chin. "I just wanna Inkbrush. A normal one, nothin' special or 'nything."

"Just an Inkbrush? Sounds fine by me," Sheldon said. "It costs only 2,600G! Yes, only 2,600G to give this lovely brush a home!"

"Do ya take debit?" asked Perry, pulling his dad's debit card out of his wallet.

"Of course! Not every inkling can afford to carry a lot of money around, you know," he responded. He then directed the pasty boy to the nearby POS system and tapped on the pad. "Slide your card through here, enter your PIN, and sign, and you'll be on your way with your brand new Inkbrush!"

"Sounds fresh." Perry completed the transaction, and Sheldon huddled over to the display rack. He took an Inkbrush off of it, and walked back over to him to give it to him.

"Thank you! I'm sure you'll give it a good home," the vender thanked.

"Don't worry." The purple-eyed inkling smirked. "It'll be under very good care." He took the Inkbrush and left the shop.

Holding it tightly, his eyes drifted towards the Deca Tower. That was where he would go next. He walked up to the entrance and leaned his new weapon against the wall. He pulled out his phone to see if anyone had texted him. Indeed, someone had. It was Yuri, asking him when he was going to record his next song. He replied that he didn't know and slipped the phone back into his pocket. He just wanted to have fun now.

The lobby was less active than he expected, but a healthy amount of inklings still flowed in and out the elevators leading to the arenas. Now, Perry had a decision to make. Did he want to just test out the Inkbrush in a normal turf war, or should he jump straight into a ranked battle? He stood there, his eyes moving back and forth between the two sections of the lobby. Soon enough, he found his legs dragging him towards the turf war elevators. He had made his decision.

He squeezed into a packed elevator, and quickly, it started to descend. None of the inklings seemed to know each other, as everyone just sort of stood there awkwardly. Perry wanted to break the silence, but he didn't know how. He could enthuse about his new Inkbrush, but no one at all held a brush in their hands. Perhaps it was for the best; he would forget about them as soon as he left. Soon enough, the floor opened beneath them to reveal the familiar grate, and the purple-haired inkling slipped through it as a squid.

A few moments later, he emerged from a pool of ink, a ship deck sprawled out in front of him. He felt nausea creep up on him. He hated any type of boat with a burning passion. It all started years ago, when he threw up on the deck of the family yacht. Later, he grew to hate seaside trips more and more, as he got seasick every single time. Now, his family never go on them. It was for the best, anyways.

"The Manta Maria?" the inkling next to him gasped. She had her hair tied into a bun, much like Bonnie's, and was clasping a Splash-o-matic in her hands. "I love this stage!"

_Wish I could say the same thing,_ Perry commented silently. Though he had only played on this stage a few times, he still loathed it.

The clock started ticking as yellow ink started to fly all around his team. Clenching the Inkbrush, the inkling wearing the king flip mesh put the bristles to the ground and started running towards the center. He smirked. He could do this for sure! The sooner they claimed the center, the better. Within a few seconds, he reached his destination and started swinging his Inkbrush back and forth. Satisfaction bubbled in his chest as his color of ink covered the deck. He would paint the ship red…except it would be yellow instead.

Globs of deep violet ink started to push their way towards the center mast, so Perry decided to run towards the attacker. He could ambush them, just like in the videos. He jumped up to a raised platform and stuck a tongue out at the newcomer. This inkling had a black FireFry bandana tied around his head, making his slick-backed tentacles pop out more. He held a .52 Gal in his hands and, with a scowl on his face, tried to shoot Perry upon his taunt. Alarmed, the inkling with spiky bangs covering his face jumped out of the way and inked a path for him to hide in. Another inkling with a ponytail pushed past that inkling and started firing his Splattershot Jr.

"Not good," Perry muttered. He threw his brush to the ground again and started running away from them. Bullets of ink aimed at him as he ran, and the other two inklings pushed into the center of the ship. He climbed onto a wall and looked around. _Where are the 'ther squids?_

"_Charrggeee!_" someone suddenly screamed. An inkling wielding a simple blaster started pushing towards the enemy's turf, with the other inklings diving out of the way of her wrath. The inkling wielding the Splash-o-matic followed her, inking the territory left behind. The girl with the blaster managed to splat the boy with the .52 Gal, while the one with the Splattershot Jr. simply ran away. Seeing this as his chance, he started racing after the fleeing inkling, going deeper and deeper into enemy territory. He stopped when the enemy submerged into the ink, leaving no trace of his whereabouts. He swore and started to ink the surrounding area.

Suddenly, he had an idea. Swinging his Inkbrush to slowly create a path, he arrived at the opposite side of the ship, and looked around. It appeared that no one was around. Snickering, he started to draw something inappropriate on their turf. _They'll really get a kick out of this!_ Once his job was done, he started swimming back to the center mast. However, he had to reemerge from the ink when he encountered an obstacle—more deep purple ink. He was about to wipe it away when a different inkling emerged from it. She lifted her Dynamo Roller, winding it up to prepare for an all-out attack. Frantically, Perry swung his Inkbrush back and forth to try to take her down. Before he could, she swung the roller down, squishing him.

A few seconds later, Perry was back at the spawn. Yellow ink covered their side of the ship, making him smile. He swam up to a wall and drew a smiley face on it. It was much less mundane, but at least it would be his team that would be seeing it. He gasped when he noticed that someone was standing on the wall he had just painted on. Hearing this, the previously unknown inkling looked over her shoulder to look down at him. Afterwards, she continued charging up her E-liter 4K, focusing back on the main area. Perry stood there, dumbfounded, for a few seconds before he shook it off and continued to travel to the main area.

Back at the central mast, purple and yellow ink flew all over the place. The girl with the blaster continued her rampage, now shooting the enemy inkling with the Dynamo Roller down. While the girl with the E-liter 4K shot beams of ink across the area, another girl with Enperry Splat Dualies continuously rolled out of the way. Perry looked over at his teammate. Her determined grey gaze focused on the girl with the dualies. Something about her made a blush creep up his face. Maybe if he could splat her target, he could impress her. With his mind made up, he slipped into the ink and swam over to the girl with the dualies.

She, who had a hair clip attached to her long hair, also inked the turf around her as she rolled around as fast as she could. Perry had to fall back a few times as the purple ink inhibited him. Soon enough, she ran out of ink and slipped into it to retreat. Ripples marked her movements, and the purple-eyed inkling followed her as far as he could. When he could not go forward anymore, he reemerged from the ink and chased after her with the bristles down to the ground. They arrived at the place where he had vandalized enemy turf, and the girl with the Enperry Splat Dualies gasped as soon as she reemerged.

"Who did that?!" she demanded, pointing to the inappropriate drawing.

"I did." The girl jumped and turned around to face Perry, but all he did was smack her with her brush, and she splatted within an instant. "Booyah…" he whispered, and then he ran away from the scene.

The girl with the Splash-o-matic came into the corridor, inking the purple ink with her own yellow ink. She looked at Perry and waved, and then moved on back into enemy territory. The inkling with the king flip mesh shrugged and followed her back. He walked up next to her, noticing that she became paralyzed at the sight of his drawing.

"Uh… You OK?" he asked. "We kinda have to… ya know. Ink turf." He, too, froze when she disappeared in a puff of yellow smoke. He shook off the shock and started to ink around his drawing. He did not want to ruin it, after all! Even though it was chipped with purple ink at the edges. As he circled in, a rain of violet ink suddenly came down on him. He squeaked and fell to the ground, the Inkbrush being knocked out of his hands. "No!" He rolled over to the brush to grab it, when a glob of purple ink struck him from behind, and he exploded into yellow ink.

He respawned, and soon enough, another inkling respawned alongside him. It was the girl with the blaster. If she was splatted, then the only logical conclusion he had was that the others were in trouble. Immediately, he swam through the ink as fast as he could. Superjumping was not really an option here, as he did not know if it was safe. Perry climbed up onto a platform, and suddenly, he had an idea. What if he climbed up on the center mast? He through a Splat Bomb towards the ground, hoping to create both a distraction and a path. It exploded, and the purple-eyed inkling leaped into the ink. He splatted a path onto the mast and began to climb up it.

Once he was on the grate that circled around the mast, he decided to draw another inappropriate image on the wood. He did so, and once again, he threw another bomb at the ground. As soon as it was deployed, Perry looked around. Purple started to spread across the land, probably as a result from one of his own team disappearing. He looked down at the ground. The girl with the Dynamo Roller moved around slowly, inking the turf in front of her with every step. The boy with the Splattershot Jr. helped ink it as well, using its firing rate to his advantage. The inkling with the .52 Gal, on the other hand, was walking towards Perry's team's side of the boat. He sighed. There was nothing he could do from above. If only he had his Sloshing Machine with him…

The inkling with the king flip mesh walked across the bridge to his side of the land and watched as the enemy team advanced. He then saw yellow rings of ink shoot towards them, exploding after a short distance. He turned around to see the girl with the blaster shoot at them, though it would be in vain. The boy with the Splattershot Jr. appeared from behind his teammate and started shooting at her. Quickly, she exploded into purple ink. Some of it splatted onto Perry's hoodie, and he had to wipe it off. He inked the platform he was on and hid in it, hoping that they would not notice him.

Suddenly, the boy with the .52 Gal threw a point sensor at the platform he was on, and a purple arrow began to circle around him. With his position revealed, he swam towards the grate to give him more time before they would arrive to splat him. As soon as he slid through it, he reformed and started swinging his brush to ink the ground beneath him. He hid in it for a second or two to recharge the lost ink, and then he emerged to continue inking. He drew a larger version of the image he drew on the mast beforehand, though. Just to taunt the enemies.

He heard another groan, and Perry turned around to see the girl with the Enperry Splat Dualies again, growling at his piece of art. She started painting over it, and then she made her way over to Perry. Realizing her intent, he started swiping his brush around, backing away from the ripples that became closer and closer to him. Then, he was ran over by a Dynamo Roller. _Again?!_

When he respawned, he saw deep violet spreading across their side of the ship, inching closer and closer. The girl with the blaster continued to fire it, albeit with little success. The girl with the E-liter 4K stood on a smaller mast, aiming the beam at the inklings below. Without much hesitation, Perry superjumped to the girl with the charger. Noticing, she stepped out of the way to allow him to land.

When he landed, he slipped down below the grate. "Here we go!" He started swinging it wildly, hoping to hit someone. Inking was not his concern here—it was splatting. Some globs of ink flew past him, and he looked around for the source. Suddenly, the boy with the Splattershot Jr. made himself visible once again. Perry charged towards him, and he swung it as hard as he could at him. He started swinging back and worth, ignoring the ink hitting his hoodie right now. Soon enough, the two splatted at the same time. By the time he respawned, a whistle blew. The game had ended.

"I can't believe it!" the girl with the blaster cried. She slumped against the railing of the platform the spawning point was on. "We were doing so good, and then we lost!"

"It be that way sometimes," Perry commented, walking up to her. "Ya win some, ya lose some. That's what they say, right?"

"He's right," a new voice agreed. Turning behind him, he saw the pretty inkling with the E-liter 4K. She stood it up, its tank against the yellow ground. "Doesn't matter if we lose. We'll just play another round."

"It wouldn't have happened if the other girl didn't disappear!" the girl with the bun argued. "She was so fresh, we could have won with her!"

"Well, there's nothing we can do now," the other girl said. She had rather straight hair, with the ends of the tentacles cut off. Her cycling cap shaded her eyes ever-so-slightly. "We just have to wait for the Judds now."

As soon as she said that, Judd and Lil' Judd arrived, hopping onto the mast on Perry's team. Everyone looked up at them, anticipating the results. The cats danced for a little bit, and Lil' Judd struck out a purple flag, while Judd fell on his back. No one was surprised; the purple team had dominated the match. Without saying another word, all of the inklings superjumped back to the Deca Tower.

When they arrived back in Inkopolis, they appeared in the dark room that detailed the match more. The map on the screen flashed, showing the crushing defeat Perry's team had. The inkling with spiky bangs looked over at the enemy team. They all high-fived each other. The inkling who had the charger crossed her arms and scowled at them. The girl who had the blaster walked over to the screen and pressed it, showing the stats of each player in depth. To Perry's dismay, he had not inked as much turf as he hoped.

"You know…" the girl with the Dynamo Roller started, walking over to him. "Despite the fact that you aren't that good, you actually did pretty decent."

"Thanks," Perry replied. He smiled. All those Inkbrush highlight videos really paid off.

"I'll admit, jumping into the ring to splat the girl with the dualies was pretty brave," the inkling with the E-liter 4K commented. The purple-eyed inkling felt his heart skip a beat, and he melted into an even bigger smile, heat creeping up his face once again.

"Even though you drew… that," the girl with the Enperry Splat Dualies added, bitterness ringing her voice.

"What… Oh, dear cod," the girl with the blaster realized, facepalming. "_You _drew those? That's gonna get you a suspension, you know." Her fingers parted to reveal a single red eye.

"Come on, just let me have fun," Perry protested. "Can't do that with a slosher, ya know."

"You use sloshers?!" the boy with the Splattershot Jr. marveled. "Dude, that's so fresh! I can't do anything with them!"

"Well, I specifically use the Sloshing Machine most of the time," the purple-eyed inkling clarified. "It's heavier than just a plain ol' Slosher, but it packs a punch!"

"That's even fresher!" the ponytailed boy enthused, his eyes sparkling with wonder.

"Yeah, yeah." He looked at his Inkbrush. "But I like this, too."

"Well, whatever," the girl with the E-liter 4K muttered. "I'm leaving."

Perry's eyes widened at her statement, and as she left to enter the main lobby, he chased after her. "Wait!"

She stopped and turned around to look at him. "What?"

"Umm… What's your name?" Perry gave an awkward, toothy smile.

"Lori," she replied. She crossed her arms again, her grey eyes staring down at him. "You?"

"P-Perry," he stuttered.

She held out a hand. "Nice to meet you."

He took it and shook it. "N-Nice to meet ya too." After the handshake, he just kind of stood there, fidgeting with the Inkbrush. "Can I… umm…" He looked up at Lori. Why did she have to be so tall? "Have your number?"

"Sure." She took a teal phone out of her pocket and displayed her phone number on the screen. Perry pulled out his and entered the phone number into his contacts. He sent her a quick text, and a message appeared on the screen of Lori's phone.

"Oh, that's me," Perry clarified. "Ya see, that's my number up there."

"I see." She slipped the phone back into her pocket. "I guess I'll be seeing you."

"Be seeing ya too." The two inklings went their separate ways, and Perry decided to head over to the interface that held the Rainbow Squids' weapons. There, however, he saw a familiar short, orange-haired inkling.

"Alexis?" he queried.

The inkling turned around, confirming his suspicions. "Hey Perry," she greeted. "Looking yellow today, I see."

"Don't worry, I'll change it back to purple," he said, smiling. "Yellow's a one-time thing."

Her eyes drifted to the weapon Perry was holding. "Why do you have an Inkbrush?"

"I bought it, duh."

"And you used it?"

"Yeah. Why else would I buy one?"

"You don't see me using a Splattershot, now do you?"

There was a pause, and the two inklings burst out into laughter. "Ha, that's true," Perry agreed. "But anyways, I met a hot girl today."

"Pearl?"

"Not Pearl. Her name's Lori." He pulled his phone out of his pocket and pointed at it. "I got her number and everything!"

"…I guess that's fresh," Alexis admitted. "I'm guessing you wanna get in here?"

"Yeah, I wanna use my Sloshing Machine again."

"If you say so." The young inkling activated the interface, and the floor tile lit up, sliding to reveal the passage down below. The two headed down to the storage room. Perry found his Sloshing Machine and set the Inkbrush down on the ground. He heaved the Sloshing Machine up the stairs while Alexis followed him up with her Splat Dualies in hand.

"Since you're here… wanna play a ranked battle?" Alexis asked.

"What is it right now?"

"Splat Zones."

"I'm down for it." The two looked at each other and nodded. "Now, let's go."

"Right!"

The two friends bounded towards the ranked section of the lobby, all in anticipation for the next battle.

* * *

**A/N: Here it is! Chapter 7, and now we have seen each Rainbow Squids' PoV once (except Geneva, but she's on vacation)! If you didn't guess, next chapter will be in Roy's PoV. Hope you liked this chapter, and Branchwing, out!**


	8. Swimming in Interviews

_Roy's PoV_

For the past few minutes, all Roy could do was stare at the date on the calendar, circled in bold red marker. It was today. August 26th. In a few hours, he could have a job at Starfish Drinks. He took a few breaths. He had to look profreshional today. He looked over at the varsity jacket hanging on his chair. He wouldn't be wearing it today. Roy opened his closet in search for something profreshional. He spotted a dress shirt and took it out of the closet, then putting it on.

A few minutes later, Roy looked at himself in the mirror. Disregarding his normal tan complexion and his bright red hair that was slicked to the side, he was rather satisfied with how he looked. Over the dress shirt was a black suit and a tie as red as his hair. Alongside it were black dress pants and black dress shoes. He picked up some sunglasses off of his dresser and put it on him. He smirked. Now, he really looked like a secret service agent today.

The red-haired inkling left his house and hopped into his car. He started it and drove down the streets of Inkopolis. However, he was faced with the ever-dreadful traffic. The line of cars inched along, and quickly did Roy start to become impatient. He honked the horn of his car a few times to no avail. He sighed and leaned back into the car seat. He pulled out his phone to see what was going on Squidsagram.

What was on Squidsagram was about what he expected. In addition to the everyday pictures people posted of themselves, he found himself with several likes on a picture he took of his calendar. Alongside it were comments telling him good luck on his job interview. He looked up every now and then and stepped on the gas pedal whenever traffic was inching forwards. A while later, he decided to snap a picture of himself and post it. He then slipped the phone back into his pocket and turned on the radio to occupy his time.

Even more time later, Roy had finally arrived at the Starfish Drinks near the square. He parked his car and got out of it, stretching. There, he found his friends by the entrance of the coffee shop, looking at their phones.

Yuri looked up from his phone, and gasped. "Guys! Roy's here!"

"Yo, Roy!" Perry greeted. "Good luck on that interview!"

"Yeah, good luck," Bonnie agreed. "I'm sure you'll do great."

Alexis put her phone back into her pocket and picked up a sign that was leaning against her side, holding it up. "Good luck Roy!" she quoted the sign. It was made from light brown cardboard, and the message was written in red paint. She then lowered the sign. "The hard part about making this was finding the paint," she whispered. "Apparently, red paint is hard to come by."

"Can you squids stop loitering?!" a worker yelled, peeking out of the door of Starfish Drinks. "I'm calling the police if you don't leave."

"Sorry," Inigo apologized. "It was my idea." He glanced at the Rainbow Squids, then at Roy. "Hope you liked it," the indigo-haired inkling whispered to him.

"Oh no, I didn't like it… I loved it," Roy replied, smiling. It was nice to have friends that supported him. "Too bad you guys can't stay longer," he said, turning to face the rest of his friends.

"Well, we'll congratulate you after the interview," Octavia assured. "We'll be waiting at the square."

"If you don't find us immediately, we're probably doing a match," Inigo added.

"Text us if so," Yuri finished.

"Alright," Roy said. "Thanks."

"No prob at all!" Perry exclaimed before they all headed towards the square. Now, it was only Roy standing in front of the coffee ship.

The worker that had yelled at them raised an eyebrow at the red-haired inkling's refusal to leave. "What about you? Those are your friends, right?"

"They are," Roy started, "but I'm here for an interview."

"An interview?" The employee took a piece of paper out of his pocket and scanned the list he had written on there. "There's one scheduled for 11:00 AM today. For…" He squinted. "…Roy Blacktip."

"Yep," the tanned inkling confirmed. "That's me."

"Well, then, come on in." The worker opened the door all the way and gestured for Roy to come inside. "I'll take you to the back. I'm sure Mr. Carp would take you in early."

"Thanks." The two inklings walked towards a door that read, 'Employees Only!', and the worker knocked on it. Soon, another inkling with tired orange eyes opened the door. Fittingly, his hair was also orange, but the tips of it were white.

"What do you want, Molas?" he asked. He took a sip out of a mug with the company's logo on it. "Is Stern trying to clip your ponytail off again?"

"No! Not at all!" Molas cried. "He doesn't even work today! But, this squid did come early for his interview."

The older inkling glanced over at Roy. "Are you Mr. Blacktip?"

The red-haired inkling straightened and replied, "Y-Yes." He gulped as anxiety spread throughout his body. He cursed at himself for looking so nervous. _I can't be nervous now! I can't let them see me as weak!_

He nodded. "Follow me." Roy stepped behind the inkling, and he then looked at his employee. "Get back to work."

"R-Right, sir!" The worker dashed off.

The older inkling slammed the door shut and started walking. "My name is Miles Carp, but please call me Mr. Carp," he introduced himself. "I am the one interviewing you today."

"Nice to meet you," Roy muttered.

Mr. Carp stopped and turned around. He held out his free hand. "Nice to meet you too." They shook hands and then continued walking. Soon enough, the older inkling stopped at a door and opened it. He went inside, and Roy followed. "Sit here," Mr. Carp instructed, pointing to the chair closest to the door.

"Okay." The red-haired inkling sat down, fidgeting with his thumbs under the table. The other inkling sat down at the opposite end of the table. He set down his mug next to a pile of papers, and then he straightened the stack of papers.

Mr. Carp put on a pair of reading glasses and started, "So, Mr. Blacktip, it says here on your resume that you are a student at West Inkopolis High School."

"Yes…"

"And that you are a member of its baskfishball team." Roy nodded. "Can you tell me about your grades?" he asked, lifting his head up to stare at the tan-skinned inkling.

"I have a C in math and an A in P.E. and history. I have a B in everything else."

"Alright, then. Back to baskfishball—what skills are required to be a good player?"

"Well… You have to have good hand-eye coordination." A determined look hardened into the teenage inkling's eyes. "Without it, you'll miss your target. And, you must also be a team player. Cooperation is crucial, and everything will fall apart without it. It's also recommended to have a lot of stamina, and that can be improved by exercising. Strong arms and legs are also a good idea."

"Good, good. Now, how good are your skills?

"Well, I'm tall, which helps with scoring goals. I also participate in turf wars a lot, and I practice regularly. Though…" His gaze faltered, and he looked away from Mr. Carp for a few moments. "I might not be the best at helping out the team." The two locked gazes again. "When I get the ball, I tend to go off in my own direction. Sometimes we lose because of it."

The older inkling closed his eyes, and then he let out a sigh. He opened his eyes again and asked, "Have you worked on improving your teamwork?"

"Well, I work best with my best friends," Roy started. "When we're in a ranked battle, and even in turf wars, together, we try anything we can to win. Don't get me wrong, my teammates are also my friends, but…" He bit his lip. How could he explain? He has gone through so much with the Rainbow Squids. They've been friends since they were small squids, and now, they were inseparable. "…We've known each other for so, so, long."

"Are your teammates interested in turf wars?"

"Not all of them are inklings, so a lot of them kinda… can't. I have played a turf war or two with the squids on my team, though. We usually get together to practice baskfishball."

"How often do you get together?"

"Twice a week, usually. Sometimes it's once a week, other times it's every day, sometimes we don't practice together at all that week."

"I see. Now, how do you think these skills will transfer over to the workplace?"

Anxiety bubbled in the red-haired inkling's chest again. _Here comes the hard part._ "W-Well, I can get stuff from hard-to-reach places because I'm tall and all. And, if I get along with my co-workers well, we can be efficient in getting drinks out to the customers, therefore making everything go faster."

Mr. Carp nodded and then asked, "Now, what are your weaknesses?"

"My weaknesses?" Roy gulped. "Well, I'm impatient, and I get mad easily. I can't hide it sometimes."

"I see. What would you bring to the workplace?"

"I would make Starfish Drinks lines go faster, so people can get their coffee or whatever faster. How would I do that? Well, I would try to make my drinks as fast as possible. Maybe if they see me do it, everyone else would speed up, too."

"Interesting…" Mr. Carp scanned the paper he was holding before looking back up at the red-eyed inkling. "Last question. Why should I hire you?"

"Why? Well, I'm efficient, fast, and overall, I'd make the place better for everyone, for both the customers and the employees," Roy immediately blurted out. Afterwards, he made a small sound. Should he have really said that?

"Alright." The interviewer lined up the papers on the desk again and stood up, picking up the mug as well. "That will be all. I'll send these notes to the manager of this establishment for review. If you get an email or call from us within one week of today, you got the job, squid. If you don't, well… then you didn't get it."

"Okay." The tanned inkling also lifted himself off the chair. "Have a nice day," he said before leaving the room, waving to Mr. Carp.

"You too." He held the door open for the older inkling to leave, and then shut the door once they were out. Roy walked towards the end of the hallway and opened the door there, entering the main area of Starfish Drinks.

"Hey, Blacktip!" a familiar voice called. The red-haired inkling whipped his head around to see Molas at the counter. He had paused writing a name on the coffee cup to look up at him. "How did it go?"

The other inkling shrugged. "It was okay."

"Think they'll hire ya?"

"They take just about anyone, don't they?"

"Well, they do, _but_ people have been rejected before. Like my friend Ryan. Apparently, they rejected him because he had terrible grades."

Roy started to get a little nervous. "Does he work here now…?"

"Oh, no. He started a food truck a few months ago, almost immediately after we graduated. He's doing pretty fine, last time I checked," Molas replied. "But, you should be fine." He nodded. "I'll be looking forward to working with ya."

"But that's if I get the job," he added. The two chuckled, and then the inkling with his hair swept to the side said, "Alright, see you later."

"K, bye."

Roy left the coffee shop, and it was as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He had nothing to worry about now. He'll go to the square and see his friends, and they'll congratulate him. That was their plan. He looked over at the silver car he drove here in. _It can wait_. Still in his suit and tie, he started walking down the sidewalk in the direction of Inkopolis Square. He pulled out his phone and texted his friends that he was going there now.

"Hey, inkling!" someone suddenly called, and suddenly, the red-haired inkling felt something light hit his side. He turned around to see a group of young sea urchins, snickering. Next to Roy was a piece of crumbled-up paper, so he picked it up. He then unfolded it to see what was written inside, which was a poorly drawn portrait of himself with a goofy face. 'Stupid' labeled it.

"What?!" he growled, ripping the drawing into pieces. One of the urchins through another piece of paper at him, though he didn't bother to pick it up this time.

"You going to a party?" the same urchin sneered. "Cause Inkopolis Square isn't the place for fancy parties."

"That suit doesn't look too awfully fresh either!" another urchin heckled. "You need better fashion taste if you wanna get into the square."

"I was at an interview!" Roy snapped, taking a step closer to the group of sea urchins. "I don't normally look like this!"

"I don't like your hair," a third urchin commented.

_At least this isn't two years in the past, _the red-haired inkling thought. _I should have worn a ponytail instead of keeping my hair down back then. _"I put time and effort into this!" he said instead, clenching his fists. "No one else cares, so why do you?!"

"Because I do," that urchin replied bluntly.

"That hair isn't all that fresh either!" the second urchin jeered.

"Yeah, it really emphasizes the fancy look," added the first urchin. "We don't go for fancy here."

"Alright, if you guys don't stop, you all are gonna receive the beating of your lifetime," Roy threatened, pounding a fist into his hand. "I bet I can beat you in three seconds splat." All of the sea urchins looked at each other aghast, and then all of them fled the area. He smirked. He didn't like doing them, but threats always seemed to work. With them gone, he continued walking down the sidewalk, taking in deep breaths to calm himself down. He would hate to arrive in a bad mood.

Soon enough, he arrived at the square, and looked around. Quickly, he noticed the Rainbow Squids, all chatting with the signs they had earlier. It seemed that they noticed him too, as he saw Yuri talking excitedly. He walked up to them, everyone already turned to look at him.

"Hey, Roy," Inigo greeted. "How did it go?"

"I think it went fine," the red-haired inkling lied. In his opinion, it did not go so great.

"Great!" Yuri cheered. "You'll get the job for sure!"

"Wait, what did he apply for again?" Alexis asked suddenly.

"Barista," Roy answered.

"Oh, okay. Sounds like a neat job," the young inkling said.

"Either way, congratulations," Octavia spoke up.

"Yeah, congratulations!" Bonnie echoed.

"Congrats," Perry then added.

The red-haired inkling smiled. "Thanks, guys."

"'ny time, pal," the purple-haired inkling said, winking. "How about a turf war?"

"A turf war?" Via pondered. "Sounds like a solid plan to me." She looked at her friend. "You might wanna change your clothes, though."

"I know, I know," the tan-skinned inkling muttered. "There was really bad traffic when I was driving to Starfish Drinks, though. It'd be a while before we can actually do a turf war."

"Why not buy new clothes?" Inigo suggested. "You can change in the fitting rooms of one of the shops, put your suit in your car, and then we can be on our merry way."

"That's… not a bad idea," Roy noted. "Let's go!" Looking over at Shella Fresh, he started to dash over to it.

"Wait for me!" Via called. "I'll be your fashion adviser!"

"Don't forget me!" the indigo-haired inkling shouted.

"And me!" Alexis exclaimed.

"I'm comin' too," Perry blurted out.

"Well, guess I'm going in, too," Yuri said.

"If everyone else is going in, then so am I," Bonnie finished.

All of the Rainbow Squids arrived at the entrance way of the shoe shop, and Roy's smile only got even bigger when he saw his friends surrounding him. He shrugged, and everyone went inside without any question. No matter what happened, it was clear that they would always stick together.

* * *

**A/N: Happy Mother's Day! Here's a chapter just for you! ...Though, I kind of doubt any mothers read this. But, here's a fun fact: Mr. Molas actually first appeared in Chapter 5! He's the employee who got slapped by grumpy old Simon. I don't think I'll ever mention it otherwise, so it's better to say it now. :P Branchwing, out!**


	9. Salmonid Payback

**As always, most of Mr. Grizz's dialogue is taken from the game.**

* * *

_Octavia's PoV_

"I can't wait!" Alexis cheered from in her room. "The new Splatfest is tomorrow!"

"Flight vs. Invisibility, huh?" Octavia, who was sitting on her bed, remarked. Personally, she had picked Team Invisibility. "Hopefully, it shouldn't be as lop-sided as Mayo vs. Ketchup." She still shivered at how hard it was to get into a match against Team Ketchup members. Even in a room as bright and vibrant as her sister's.

"Didn't Mayo win?" the young inkling recalled. "Sure, it didn't have that many squids in it, but they still won!"

"Yeah, I know. But still." Via lied down on the orange-and-white checkered blanket and put her hands on her belly. "Those kinds of Splatfests suck sometimes."

"Why?" she asked. "That one was my first one, and it was great!"

"It kinda feels like everyone is against you when the team you pick isn't popular." The bronze-skinned inkling lifted a hand off herself and waved it around. "And if you pick the popular team, you play against people of the same team a lot."

"Well… those matches are still fun!" Alexis argued. "It's like any other turf war. They don't have the competitiveness of true Splatfest matches."

"You don't like variety every now and then?" she pondered. "It's why I played ranked battles a lot. Sometimes, I get sick of turf war, but I still wanna ink stuff. And, the rotation changes every few hours, so you'll never get bored of them!"

"Ranked is too competitive for me. I just wanna have fun, and turf wars are just so addicting!"

"They are, they are," the wavy-haired inkling agreed, twirling the long tentacle around her fingers. "Variety isn't a bad thing though."

"Speaking of them," her sister started, lifting herself off a red bean bag, "I have to go."

"To where?"

"Uh… I told my friend I would meet up with her after school today," Alexis replied. "And now that it's after school, I have to go now."

"Oh, okay. That's fine." Via smiled. "See ya later."

"You, too." Alexis dashed out of her room, and after some footsteps, she exited the house and was gone. The elder inkling decided that it was time to get out of the house as well. Her mind drifted back to the failed Salmon Run from a while ago. She had done a few other Salmon Runs since then, but none of them went as badly as that one. She smirked. It was time to get payback.

She, too, left the house and started walking towards the square. She could not tell where Alexis was anymore, since she was far ahead of her, but it did not matter. She was with her friends, she knew that. Today, Octavia's mind was set on Grizzco Industries. She arrived at the familiar dark entryway, with the strange music played inside emitting out of it. She took a step into the building, letting the dim lights settle in around her.

"Right on time, kid. I've got work for ya," the statue greeted. She frowned. It was always the same greeting he gave whenever she entered. Sometimes, she wondered how much Mr. Grizz actually cared about his workers.

"I'm going freelance," Via said to the statue.

"Then get on the boat," Mr. Grizz instructed. "Some other kids should be comin' pretty soon."

"Alright, I'll get on it." Octavia headed to the elevator, and a few moments later, she appeared on a boat. Looking around, she saw a few suits hanging on the clothing line spread across the ship. Oddly enough, one suit was missing. "Hello?" she then called, taking one of the suits. "Is anyone there?"

"Octavia?" someone answered. A jolt went through her when she heard her own name. Who was on this ship with her right now? Soon enough, a familiar boy with amber eyes emerged from below the deck.

"Will?" she asked. She had not seen the boy since the last Splatfest, and to be honest, she thought she would not see him again.

"Yeah, that's my name." He took off his cap, revealing his slicked-back hair, and dipped his head and winked before putting it back on. "What brings you here?"

"Well, this place gives me money," Via started to explain, "so I work here. Sometimes. It can be gross." She muttered the last sentence with a hint of bitterness.

"Hey! Salmonids are cute!" Will protested.

"Whatever." Via started to head towards the entrance to below the ship. "I'm changing. See you in a little bit."

By the time the bronze-skinned inkling had gotten fully dressed, two more inklings holding suits passed her as she was heading back up. She did not know them, but with how excited they were, she assumed the two were friends. Or, they're just excited. She couldn't exactly determine which was correct. When she got back on the deck, the boat had already detached itself from Inkopolis. It was drifting farther and farther away from her home, and the smell of the salty sea drifted around her. She leaned against a wall and crossed her arms, letting out a sigh.

"You don't look excited," Will remarked.

"I'm not," she confirmed. "I just wanna beat up salmonids for what happened a week or two ago."

"…What happened?"

"My friends and I got utterly destroyed by them! Me especially!" the wavy-haired inkling cried, throwing her hands out. "If splatlings didn't suck, then maybe we could have been fine!"

"You don't have to worry about them today." The amber-eyed inkling walked over to the poster dictating the weapons available to them today and put a rubber finger on it. "No splatlings whatsoever on here."

"Well, that's one good thing. Let me see that." Will stepped out of the way for the older inkling to look at the poster. Her mind drifted to Bonnie when she saw that the Classic Squiffer was a possible weapon. _She would love today,_ she silently remarked. _Maybe I could convince her to do a Salmon Run with me after this one._

Octavia heard more footsteps, and this time, another inkling emerged from the ship. "I'm ready!" she exclaimed. Her violet hair was tied into shredded pigtails, and one of her teeth was chipped.

"We have a while before we get to the Marooner's Bay," the boy informed. "It hasn't gotten dark yet."

"Aw." The girl, who was clearly young, plopped onto the ground. "I wish it didn't take so long to get there." She then squinted at Via. "Y'know, you remind me of a girl I know. Except older. And your hair's more of a plain old orange, and not a yellow-orange."

"I do, now?" The bronze-skinned inkling raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah! There's a girl in my grade named Alexis. We're not friends, though." The violet-haired inkling smiled. "Just acquaintances!"

"…What school do you go to?" Though she was sure she was referring to her sister, she just wanted to make sure.

"West Inkopolis High School, why?"

"Yeah, that's my sister you're talking about," Octavia revealed. "Of course we look alike."

"Oh, cool," she simply said. "My name's Maggie, by the way." The girl got back up to her feet. "I came here with my friend. Her name's Bella." She glanced over at the entryway. "She's still down there."

"Eh, I don't know anyone there," Will commented. "I go to Central Inkopolis."

The wavy-haired inkling looked up at the sky. The previously blue sky now bloomed in shades of pink and orange. She gasped, causing the other two inklings present to look up at the sky, too. Maggie started to call for her friend's name, and soon enough, another young inkling with short pink hair barreled up onto the deck.

"So sorry!" Bella apologized. "I was just looking at the pictures under the deck!"

"It's fine," her friend assured. "It's the timing that counts."

Octavia looked past the ship and into the distance. Some cliffs came into view, and near it was an abandoned ship stuck to a chunk of land. Marooner's Bay. The orange-eyed inkling was never a big fan of the area, with the propellers especially bothering her. They always messed her up. The boat soon stopped, and it was soon time to super jump. Everyone's ink color shifted to a nice orange, and a few seconds later, everyone launched off the ship.

Via landed near the square where the egg basket would pop up, and she emerged from her puddle of ink with a Splat Brella in her hands. She shot a stream of ink out of it just to test the waters, and soon the canopy came up to protect her.

"Just having it up isn't effective for inking," Bella advised. The older inkling turned around to face the girl currently wielding the Splat Roller. "You have to pull the trigger again… and again… and again."

"Good call." Octavia put down her shield and started firing as much as she could. It was no Undercover Brella, but from what she has seen, it still fired at a good pace. She smiled. She knew for sure that this run would turn out better than the last one with her friends.

"The egg basket is ready and waiting," Mr. Grizz informed through the radio. The bronze-skinned inkling could faintly hear the mechanism shifting to reveal the aforementioned basket. "Now, go get me some golden eggs!" A foghorn sounded, and then the raspy voice commanded, "You've got a boss salmonid incoming. _Do your job!_"

"Over here!" Will called. With the ink the group had put down, she slipped into it to swim over to where he was at. A Flyfish whirled ahead, floating around before it stopped to open its launchers. "Now! Throw a bomb!" He himself threw a bomb at one of the launchers, and it managed to land. Via emerged from the orange ink to throw a bomb at the other launcher. She succeeded like her teammate, and the boss salmonid went down soon after it launched its missiles.

Octavia started to run as the green targets appeared on the ground. She ran back over to the egg basket and watched as orange ripples made their way through the ink, heading towards her location. She smiled. As long as one egg from the Flyfish was in here, they would be good.

"Woah, woah, another one!" another voice called. Via walked over to the edge of the bow and looked down at the sand. A Steel Eel had emerged from the water, and Maggie was running from it, the Classic Squiffer in her hands. She made her way on the abandoned ship and looked down at her weapon. "Things are going badly! I barely know how to use this thing!"

"Maybe you should try staying on high ground," the bronze-skinned inkling advised. She looked over at the boss salmonid, whose eyes were set on the young inkling. "…Though, you might wanna run." Maggie nodded furiously and slipped back into the ink to run. The girl with pigtails dropped down to a pier, so the Steel Eel curved around the ship. When the salmonid manning the machine came within range, she began shooting at it until it exploded into orange ink. The other machine parts came crashing down and disappeared within an instant. "Come back up, Maggie," Via called. "It's safe." She then proceeded to grab the eggs the Steel Eel dropped.

"U-Uh, okay!" Via heard Maggie arrive on the top of the ship, followed by the charging and firing of the Classic Squiffer. "I'm best staying up here, like you said. I'll take your word for it," she then told her.

"Good." Once she was finished putting the eggs in the basket, she started to search for another boss salmonid, its arrival marked with yet another horn. She heard the roar of an engine growing near, cluing her to the presence of a Scrapper. The wavy-haired inkling looked around, her orange eyes darting around the area. The sound grew louder and louder, and the girl looked behind her. She started shooting it until sparks flew out of the machine the salmonid road, and the metal slumped. She swung around it and shot it until it golden eggs burst out. "There's more eggs over here!" she shouted before taking one herself.

"Well, we need help here!" she then heard Bella call. Octavia made her way over to the opposite side of the ship to see two Steelheads closing in on her and Will. They launched their bombs, and the two inklings dove out of the way. Soon enough, Maggie arrived next to her.

"What do I do?!" she cried, firing her charger rapidly.

"Charge up a shot and aim for the bombs," Via commanded. She noticed other salmonids closing on them, the ones that are much, much weaker. "I'll deal with them."

"Um… alright!" The girl with pigtails lifted her squiffer, and she stepped back as the boss salmonids wandered around. In the meantime, the bronze-skinned inkling shot at the Chums and Cohocks coming their way, easily bringing them down. She heard a grunt, followed by the firing of the Classic Squiffer. One of the Steelheads exploded, and three golden eggs floated to the ground.

Regarding the other one, Bella tried doing a vertical swing with her roller, and succeeded somewhat. Orange ink now spotted the green bomb it was charging, and quickly did another bomb come crashing down on the ship. Bella screamed as she was caught in the explosion. Will, who narrowly evaded the explosion, gasped, and started to shoot where she had splatted. It was in vein, though, as several Smallfries assaulted him, causing him to blow up in green ink, too.

"Time for the shield." Octavia pulled out the canopy and positioned herself where she could get both fallen co-workers when it launched off of the handle. Understandably, salmonids started to attack the shield, green ink splatting onto it. Soon enough, she saw the canopy detach from the main body of the Brella. It managed to revive Will before another Chum hit it, breaking it. In the background, she heard the second Steelhead explode into bits of metal and orange ink.

"Booyah!" the amber-eyed inkling exclaimed, taking the moment to revive Bella. He snatched one of the golden eggs and hopped on the lift to return to the egg basket. Once the area was cleared of salmonids for the most part, all of the other inklings present took the eggs back to the basket, one at a time. Quickly, more boss salmonids breeched the surface and began their attack on the inklings.

Notably, a green beam of ink shot through the air, surprising Via for a moment. She turned around to see a Stinger towering above the ship. She started to make her way over when the pots it stood on started to come crashing down. Soon enough, she could see it no more, and she heard the ping of golden eggs appearing. She smiled and arrived to collect them.

The rest of the wave went normally, with the team working together to bring down boss salmonids. Whenever one of the workers went down, every did their duty and revived fallen co-workers. With the quota already met, Octavia was confident that this Salmon Run was going to be a successful one. Soon enough, the egg basket went down into the ground, and the salmonids started to retreat.

"We did it!" Maggie exclaimed. "We made it through a wave!"

"Don't get too cocky," Will advised. "Everything could turn bad the next wave."

The team started to cover the green ink back up with orange ink, when they were launched back to the egg basket. When the wavy-haired inkling reemerged from it, she found herself holding the weapon belonging to her own friend. The Classic Squiffer. Nothing particularly interesting happened as the countdown started and the egg basket appeared once more. All she did was ink until the horn sounded once again.

The second wave went similarly to the first, except the first boss salmonid to appear this time was a Maws. It caught Maggie, who now held a Splat Roller, off guard, and she was gobbled up once Maws made its move.

"Oh no!" Bella cried. She pulled out a bomb filled with orange ink and chucked it towards the green rings that appeared around Octavia. She jumped out of the way, letting the boss salmonid eat the grenade instead. Orange ink covered the area around where the bomb had landed as golden eggs floated down from Maws's remains. "There, now we're good!"

"What about me?!" the fallen co-worker cried, emerging from the ink as a life preserver. "Someone revive me!"

"Oh, yeah." With the Splash-o-matic she now held, the short-haired inkling shot the life preserver a few times, and her friend bounded right back up.

"Now," started Will, twirling the Splat Brella in his hands, "we can fight some more."

"Then let's get to it." Everyone looked at each other and nodded, and then they charged towards the attacking salmonids. Boss salmonids fell, and from there, there was a steady stream of golden eggs flowing from the battlefield to the egg basket. The group met the quota early on and being splatted was rare in this wave.

Soon enough, the egg basket disappeared once again, and everyone cheered. They launched back to the spawn points, and Via appeared once more, this time with the Splat Roller in her hands. The land around them shrunk, and darkness quickly fell over the land. _Uh oh,_ the bronze-skinned inkling thought. _This can't be good_.

"An event!" Maggie exclaimed. "I wonder what's gonna happen!"

"I hope we see Grillers," Bella enthused. "I love those!"

"Grillers?" A grimace crossed Octavia's features. "I hate them."

"Whatever." The short-haired inkling leaned against the railing. "Let's just stay close."

"Yeah, good idea," Will agreed. He started charging the Classic Squiffer. "Just in case."

"The salmonids are restless," Mr. Grizz noticed. At that moment, glowing bugs started dancing around Maggie. She squeaked, trying to swat them away. "Oh, I see why—there are glowflies here. Once they start glowing, buckle up."

"Ugh, glowflies," Via remarked. "They suck."

"Inkcoming!" Bella yelled. Running next to her friend, she put up the shield of the brella she was holding as the salmonids started to swarm onto the bow. The canopy soon detached itself, and it started to roll through the red-eyed salmonids. Will, on the other hand, started firing charged shots as much as he could. The orange-eyed inkling decided to help by swinging her roller down, letting any salmonid coming their way to be crushed. As soon as the short-haired inkling took down an incoming Goldie, the glowflies on Maggie dispersed and flew over to Will.

"Dear cod," he muttered, pressing tightly against the railing. Via saw panic swarm in his eyes as his aim became messy. She ran over to him and brought down the Splat Roller, slowly inching towards the grates connecting one side of the ship to the other.

"I'll clear a path, and maybe we can get on the other side," she explained.

"Is that really a good idea?" Maggie questioned. "We haven't met the quota, and going over there would just make it harder."

The wavy-haired inkling's shoulders relaxed, jaw falling open a little bit as she realized her mistake. For a moment, she felt dumb. Dumb for thinking her plan was a good one. Maggie had a point—they would certainly fail if they proceeded with her plan. It was not until she dropped the Splat Roller when she returned to her senses. She gasped as salmonids swarmed around her and Will and picked the roller back up once she shook off the disbelief. She circled around the olive-skinned inkling and crushed the salmonids under her roller.

"Another Goldie!" Bella announced. She started shooting it as it lumbered towards the group, and she brought it down like she did with the first one. Golden eggs floated to the ground, and the group took the brief opportunity to pop them into the basket. The glowflies around Will disappeared, now appearing on the short-haired inkling.

"Jokes on you, salmonids!" she jested, sticking a tongue out. "I have my trusty shield with me!" The canopy of the brella flared out, and soon enough, it launched towards the salmonids. "…Or maybe not," she murmured, losing her previous bravado.

"Just try to get away," Will commanded. "I'll shoot the Goldie once it pops up."

"And for the time being, I'll be your steamroller," Octavia added. With the roller still down on the ground, she walked over to Bella and stood in front of her, standing tall. With the younger inkling directly behind her, the salmonids charged head-first into her roller, and they all splatted. She smirked. The ones smart enough to go around her were splatted by Maggie and Bella instead.

Soon enough, she saw a flash of gold in the distance. The Goldie. The girls backed up, allowing it to come within range of the Classic Squiffer Will was holding. Soon, a stream of orange pierced the air, and the Goldie exploded into orange ink alongside it. Everyone grabbed the eggs and tossed them into the egg basket.

"We only need… two more eggs," Maggie read. "So, one more Goldie to shoot down!"

"That's good, 'cause I see another one already," Will commented. He charged up the squiffer again and held it up. "Just needs to come closer…"

The bronze-skinned inkling's eyes widened when she saw a glowing bug fly past her face. And then another. And another. Soon, she saw the salmonids swarming towards her. It was then she realized that she was the creatures' next target.

"Oh, no you don't!" She slammed down her roller, a wave of orange ink sweeping towards the crazed salmonids. Ink splatted onto them, and the other girls were able to finish the injured salmonids off. Without any more commands, they did as Via hoped—take down the salmonids rushing towards her. She gritted her teeth as the sound of buzzing grew loud in her ears. She was determined to make it through the night.

Will shot down the boss salmonid, leaving behind golden eggs. Yet, the glowflies around her still did not disperse. She frowned. "Go away already," she muttered, using a free hand to swat one away. Maggie and Will went past her in order to collect the eggs, but she grew nervous again as another golden glow appeared on the horizon. She took a few steps forward, the salmonids running towards her still being crushed by the roller. All of a sudden, the glowflies around her disappeared, and the salmonids turned to Will.

"Again?!" he cried. Via ran over to him, rolling over the Chums in her path. Her eyes widened when she noticed the net containing the golden egg, still on her back.

"If you still have an egg…" she started, trailing off. "…Then we still need one more to meet the quota."

"I'll get it," Bella said. A Snatcher snuck up on the remaining egg, snickering. "Shoo," she hissed, shooting the thief with orange ink. She swiped the egg and threw it into the egg basket. "There! Now the quota is met!"

"I still nee-" Will's voice was cut off when three Chums swung their frying pans at him simultaneously, causing him to splat. The glowflies around him disappeared, and now they surrounded Maggie. She screamed and started to shoot wildly. Octavia, too, started to swing her Splat Roller wildly at an attempt to ward off the salmonids. In the process, she managed to revive Will once his life preserved bobbed up to the surface. When she whacked his head instead of the ground, the bronze-skinned inkling put the roller down on the ground to stay there, restarting her previous method.

The glowflies continued to cycle through the inklings until the sky grew brighter again. The eyes of the salmonids lost their devilish glow, and all of them returned to the sea.

"We did it!" Maggie cheered. "We survived!"

"We would have survived anyways," Octavia remarked, "but yeah, we survived."

"Well done," Mr. Grizz congratulated. "That's the last of 'em. Now get back to the boat." All of the inklings transformed into a squid, preparing to super jump. Promptly, everyone launched off the island, their target the boat. When Via landed on the vessel, she bowed and then stretched.

"Woo," she huffed. "We're done." _And I got my payback._

The radio on the boat started to buzz to life, and then the familiar voice said, "Let's see… You harvested 43 golden eggs this time. Nice haul."

"Thanks, Grizz!" Maggie chirped.

"Can he even hear you?" Will pondered.

"I dunno," the pigtailed inkling replied, shrugging. "Maybe. But nothing's better than showing your appreciation!"

"So, who all's gonna stay for the next round?" Bella queried, pounding a fist into her hand. "Can't wait to beat up more salmonids."

"I'm going back," Octavia answered. "I've done what I needed to do." She took off the workers' hat. "I don't need to be here anymore."

And with that, the orange-eyed inkling returned to Inkopolis with her revenge fulfilled.

* * *

**A/N: You may have noticed that I updated this chapter on a Monday. Why? Well, last night, I was playing on the Marooner's Bay stage and realized I made a mistake - the propeller lifts from Salmonid Smokeyard snuck their way into Marooner's Bay in this chapter! So, I took the time today to remove all references to the aforementioned lifts. Luckily, there weren't as many references as I thought, but it's possible I might have missed one. Hopefully, that clears things up. See you on Sunday, and Branchwing, out!**


	10. Slip and Slide

_Yuri's PoV_

"Booyah! Splatfest time!" the yellow-eyed inkling cheered, pumping a fist as he donned his Team Flight tee.

Currently, the Rainbow Squids were at the usual table, watching as Pearl and Marina performed on the stage hanging above the entrance to the lobby of the Deca Tower. Blue and green jellyfish danced everywhere, while inklings joined along in the celebration. The inklings at the table did a toast with their drinks and began to drink.

"Sometimes, I forget how much I like Crusty Sean's drinks," Octavia remarked. She was wearing the lime green t-shirt of the Invisibility Team. "But it's still a grease trap."

"And I forgot how much we argued at the last Splatfest!" Alexis added, her snark directed towards her own sister. "Seriously, we chose opposing teams, _again_. I'm Flight, you're Invisibility." She groaned. "I wonder if it'll be the same way next time."

"Maybe it will be, maybe it won't," the wavy-haired inkling said, waving her drink around.

"We'll see," Inigo commented. "The future… well, that's not set in stone." Like Octavia, he was on Team Invisibility.

"So… when we gonna go, y'know, fight?" Perry asked. "It's kinda boring just sittin' here."

"It is," Roy agreed. "But, I do wanna finish my drink."

"Why don't we talk until then?" Yuri suggested. He put down his drink and threw his hands down on the table. "So, who do ya think is gonna win? Flight or Invisibility?"

"Invisibility, of course!" Octavia replied. "I have to support my team!"

"Nah, Flight's gonna win," argued Perry. He tugged the blue shirt he was wearing. "I know it will."

"I think it's pretty obvious we all support the teams we chose," the inkling with the ponytail pointed out. "So, why are we even asking this question?"

"I just wanted to pass the time…" the spiky-haired inkling pouted. He picked up his drink again and started to drink it once more. Unsurprisingly, he was the first one to finish, so while he waited for his friends to finished, he sat in his seat, anxiously holding the empty cup. He pulled out his phone to see Squidsagram notifications. Most of the pictures were of his classmates participating in the Splatfest, much to Yuri's dismay.

The next person to finish was Roy. He tossed the cup into the trash can and stretched out his arms. Perry finished shortly after he did and did the same thing as the inkling with his hair slicked to the side. He was followed by Alexis, then Octavia, who decided to throw their cups into the trash at the same time to see if they would make it or not. Alexis did, while Via did not, causing the former to cry out in triumph. At this point, Yuri decided to throw away his cup, too, simply tossing it into the bin.

"Everyone on Team Flight is finished," commented Roy. "Everyone on Team Invisibility is not." He stood up and pushed in his chair. "Which means, me, Yuri, Alexis, and Perry can all go to the lobby together."

"What about us?" Bonnie questioned, gesturing between her and Inigo. "Just because we're slow doesn't mean you all can speed right along without us."

"Yeah, let's wait for them," Yuri agreed with her.

The red-eyed inkling sighed. "…If you say so."

After the two inklings finished their drinks, the Rainbow Squids walked to the Deca Tower and entered the lobby. Like in all Splatfests, it was packed to the point where it can be hard to breath sometimes. A claustrophobic friend of Yuri's stopped attending Splatfests after the Squid Sisters' first one due to this. Everyone went down to the storage room and grabbed their weapons.

"Y'know, I've been meaning to ask—why is there an Inkbrush in here all of a sudden?" Bonnie asked while they were in the dark room.

"Oh, that's mine," Perry replied. "I bought it a week or so ago." The purple-eyed inkling picked up his Sloshing Machine. "I've been meaning to take it home, but… I haven't."

"…Okay, then." The inkling with the double bun picked up her Classic Squiffer, and the group walked back up to the main floor of the lobby. They entered the elevators, with the ones in Team Flight in one and Team Invisibility in the other. Inside the elevator, Yuri set the barrel of the splatling to the floor and started to fiddle around on his phone. Perry sat on his Sloshing Machine, while Alexis twirled around her Splat Dualies and Roy fiddled with his Luna Blaster.

Soon enough, a group of girls, all holding some dualies, entered the elevator. The spiky-haired inkling noticed that they all wore matching outfits, with only their skin and eyes to distinguish them. Of course, this group wore the tee denotating them as part of Team Invisibility. On their heads were lime green backwards caps, and on their feet were squid-stitch slip-ons. They all huddled together, speaking about things Yuri did not really care about.

The door closed, beginning the ascent downwards. The dark-skinned inkling slid his phone back into his pocket and started leaning on his Heavy Splatling Deco.

"Fist bump?" he murmured, holding out his hand. His teammates nodded and they bumped fists, with Yuri giving a thumbs-up afterwards. Soon, a grate opened up beneath their feet. Heaving the splatling up, he then slipped into the grate in his squid form. Next thing he knew, he was in an unfamiliar place. _Shifty Station,_ he assumed. This time, he started off on a high platform, with the steps going down until it reached the middle of the stage.

"Let's ink this place up," the dark-skinned inkling muttered, holding the trigger of the splatling down. While Roy and Alexis rushed towards the center of the arena, Yuri stayed behind, inking the turf that remained. Perry helped him at first, but he abandoned him for the center soon enough. Once the area was decently inked, Yuri started to advance towards where the other inklings were.

He caught the first hint of blue on the opposite side of the pit, a girl with Dualie Squelchers was dodging Roy's fire, using the sliding it brought to her advantage. Her long hair seemed to flow in the wind as she rolled around him. To his surprise, the red-eyed inkling was holding up his own pretty well. _She must have bad aim,_ he thought. Yuri started to charge up his Heavy Splatling Deco again and walked towards her. Once he was within range of her, he started to fire. She continued to dodge the blaster attacks, ignoring him, but Roy seemed to have notice, as he stood in place for a little bit. Alarm shot through his body as the girl splatted his friend. In a flash, he fell as well.

Yuri respawned and started to swim back to the pit. On the edge of it, he noticed Alexis exchanging fire with another girl that wielded Enperry Splat Dualies. Her enemy threw a Curling Bomb down to the ground, which started bouncing off the walls. As it headed towards him, the spiky-haired inkling set up a Splash Wall in front of him, hoping it would bounce off of it. He ran away soon afterwards. He reemerged from the ink and started charging up his splatling again when the platform he was standing up suddenly moved upwards. He gasped, but continued to charge it up regardless. Using the elevation, he started firing down towards the ground, hoping to splat someone along the way. He did, splatting a girl who had plain ol' Splat Dualies.

There was always something so satisfying about splatting someone with a splatling. Like with chargers, it had to be charged up, but the rapid-fire of a charged-up splatling was much more effective in inking turf in a wide area. However, it came with the disadvantage of a splatling being rather hard to aim in his opinion. Years of practice have improved this, but regardless, the feeling of satisfaction was still there. Yuri remained on the platform, since no one could really reach him without a charger. The platform lowered again soon enough, so he went off it to find somewhere else to stand and fire.

Yuri now stood in the very most center of the stage where he continued to ink the area around him. In the corner of his eye, he saw globs of ink rain down upon the girls below every-so-often, leaving him to assume that Perry was up on a higher platform somewhere. As a girl with Dapple Dualies ran towards him, often rolling with lightning speed, he had to back up to make sure he did not get hit. The girl, who had honey-colored skin and cyan eyes, used this speed to dodge the bullets he fired, though it was not that effective, as he was able to splat her with the downtime she had between each two rolls. Unfortunately, he was splatted soon after by an unknown perpetrator, since he was heavily damaged from the exchange.

The dark-skinned inkling respawned, and soon after him was Alexis. "You got splatted, too, huh?" he muttered.

"Yeah. I found the girl with the Enperry dualies again, so we fought again, and then she splatted me." She stepped off the spawn point and looked off into the distance. "Look, they're coming up here," she said, alerting the older inkling of lime green ink creeping up the hill. Without saying another word, she ran off towards the center once more.

_Guess it's my job to splat whoever's coming up here, then._ He dipped into the blue ink and started swimming to the start of the lime green ink on the hill. On the way, he saw rings of blue speed towards the ground, exploding on compact. Looking up, he saw Roy run past him, inking a path through the sticky ink to get to the unknown inkling. On the other side of his vision, he saw green pellets fly past him, aiming at Roy. He reemerged and began to charge up his splatling again.

Roy said nothing as he charged it up to its full potential, releasing a barrage of blue ink in the end. At the end of the walkway was the girl with the Dualie Squelchers, shooting at him as he walked towards her. They managed to splat at the same time, leaving puddles of green and blue ink behind. Once he respawned from that defeat, Yuri returned to the area, where the green puddle was already covered up. Shrugging, he decided to swim again, lurking the area for another inkling to try and splat. Later, he noticed that two of the side platforms had raised again. Like he had expected, Perry was on one of them, hurling blue ink out of his weapon.

Thus, Yuri decided it was time to emerge from the ink once more and fire. He charged up the Heavy Splatling Deco and let it fire, giving a toothy smirk. He was confident that they would win, despite the girls closing in on them earlier. The girl with the Dapple Dualies had appeared again, rolling towards him. Gasping, he inked the side of the hill that led to one of the raised platforms and swam up it. He hopped onto it and started charging up his splatling again to try to splat her. Before it finished, however, a blue ring exploded behind her, causing her to explode. A few ripples appeared in the ink before someone emerged from the puddle where she once stood, revealing Roy.

"These dualie girls are fast," the tall inkling remarked, running a hand through the tentacles sitting on his head. "Sometimes I wonder what went through the producer's mind when they made these things."

"Well, they exist now." Yuri started to fire off his splatling, aiming towards the center. "Personally, I think they're cool, but I just can't figure out how to use them well." His smirk fell, leaving behind a straight face. The last time he used dualies was during a Salmon Run. Much to his dismay, he rolled into the water on accident, causing a crew wipe. He had not bothered to tell his friends, and he certainly would not tell them now.

"I hate them," he muttered, starting to shoot again once another girl, the girl with the Enperry Splat Dualies, approached them. Within a hit or two, he managed to splat her. "They're annoying and they keep dodging my fire."

"Woah, hate's a strong word," the spiky-haired inkling remarked. "You might not want to say that in front of Alexis… or any of the girls on the other team, in fact."

"I think that Enperry girl already heard me," Roy growled. "Whatever, I know what to say and what not to say. Don't have to worry about me hurting feelings anytime soon." As he walked back towards the center, he turned around, moonwalking. "But for now, we have a fight to win."

"R-Right!" he stammered, a little wary from his friend's outburst. He turned his attention back to the area, and the platform he stood on lowered once more. In contrast, the middle area had risen up above him, giving leverage to those on it. Lime green ink now launched towards the ground. He looked up to see the girl with the Splat Dualies shooting down at him, little expression present on her face. Roy climbed up to the top of the crate and started shooting at her. Due to the short range, the girl was able to hear the bursts of his blaster and quickly jumped off the platform. The girl with the Dualie Squelchers then joined her at started shooting at the tan-skinned inkling.

However, another girl managed to save her friend. From the shadows emerged Alexis, rolling into the battlefield and shooting the pale-skinned inkling with the Dualie Squelchers. She let out a scream as she was ambushed, causing the girl next to her to turn around. From there, Yuri caught a glimpse of her purple eyes, which matched her beige skin quite well. The girl with the Splat Dualies started shooting at the bronze-skinned inkling, who dodged her attacks.

"Hah! Can't catch me!" she taunted, sticking out a tongue and winking. Alexis rolled again and started shooting at her, but the other girl rolled out of the way.

"Allow me to help," the dark-skinned inkling offered, charging up his Heavy Splatling Deco. He soon released the trigger, and yet another barrage of blue ink flew out of the barrel of it. The other girl flinched as soon as the ink hit her, and soon, she splatted from the combined efforts of Alexis and Yuri.

"Booyah!" the short-haired inkling cheered. "She's down!"

With that, the whistles blew, and everyone stopped moving. Yuri slumped down to the ground, letting out a sigh of relief. Finally. It was over. His splatling fell on its side, making the bottom of it sticky with the blue ink. He started to hug it, a smile spreading across his face. Alexis shrugged and joined him, sitting down with her legs crossed. Soon, he was joined by Roy, who sat next to the younger inkling, and at last, Perry walked up to them and sat down, putting his Sloshing Machine next to him. With smiles, the four lied down and looked up at the artificial stars.

"I never thought Shifty Station could be so pretty," Yuri muttered.

"I don't know," Alexis admitted. "It reminds me of something. Something bad. I can't remember where, it was just a bad thing."

"But you gotta admit, those panels do a dang good job at making stars," Perry agreed with his dark-skinned friend. "It also has that special Marina flare," he said while throwing his hand out, spreading out his fingers. "I wonder where she learned how to make stages."

"I think we'll never know," Roy commented, resting his Luna Blaster on his chest.

"Aw, don't say that," Yuri chirped. "Maybe we will find out! …Someday."

"Yeah, someday," Alexis agreed.

"Well, our main focus right now is the Splatfest, and right now, we're waiting for the Judds to come on over," the red-eyed inkling pointed out. "Which might be a while."

A few minutes later, the two cats had appeared on the top platform, right on the block in the center of it. It was one of the girls who alerted them to it, so everyone stood up to watch Judd and Li'l Judd judge the match. Yuri watched in anticipation as they started dancing, and then, Li'l Judd pulled out a lime green flag from behind his back and struck it outwards, causing the bigger cat to fall on his back.

"We lost?!" Perry cried out. "I thought for sure we were doing great in the last few seconds there!"

"Actually," started a new voice. The group turned around to see the girl with the Splat Dualies walking towards them, with her finger on the trigger of one of them. "Tati and Erin inked most of your side while you guys were busy inking the center of the map." She pressed down the trigger, which did nothing, and folded her arms. "Well, Reia and I kept you busy, which was a good thing." She smirked. "Because we won!"

"That's not a good thing!" Roy snapped. "We lost! You sneaky little b-"

"Not in front of Alexis!" Yuri cried, covering his friend's mouth.

The purple-eyed girl rolled her eyes, followed by her dualies. "You squids are sore losers." She turned around and started walking back to her teammates. "Come on, ladies. Let's go back."

"That means we better get back, too," Perry pointed out. With that, all of the inklings in the arena prepared to super jump, and they launched into the sky, out of the Shifty Station. When they transformed back, they were back in the tower, with the map displayed on the screen. As fate would have it, the girl with the Splat Dualies was right—most of the Rainbow Squids' side of the map was spotted heavily with the lime green color of the enemy team.

"See?" the aforementioned girl sneered, a cocky smile plastered on her face. "We won."

"We already got the message, thanks," Roy growled. He pressed a button, displaying everyone's stats of the battle.

"Oh, I splatted a lot of people," Yuri commented, leaning in to see the screen.

"Hey, let me see," the girl with the Dapple Dualies butted in, pushing past Yuri and Roy. She looked up at the top of the screen and bit her lip. "I didn't splat as many squids as I hoped."

"But you were the best this time around," the girl with the Dualie Squelchers pointed out. "And look—I'm right below you!"

The Rainbow Squids gave each other nervous glances. "…Should we go, now?" Alexis asked.

"Yeah, that might be for the best," Perry replied. He patted her on the back, pushing her to leave the room they were in, back into the lobby. Yuri and Roy soon followed them, and soon enough, they found themselves back into the crowded lobby. The dark-skinned inkling looked around for his other friends, in hopes of spotting them.

"Can you see them?" Alexis asked, jumping up and down.

"No, can't see them," Roy admitted. "It's pretty hard when everyone's hair colors are just blue and green."

"What about hats?" Yuri pointed out. "Via's wearing her straw boater, Bonnie's wearing the retro specs, and Inigo…well, he has nothing on his head. Like usual."

"Well, a lot of people wear the same hats as them," the tan-skinned inkling pointed out. "It would still be pretty hard to find them regardless."

"So, we should just play another match?" Perry asked.

"Yeah, another match wouldn't a bad idea," the bronze-skinned inkling agreed.

"Then, let's go!" Yuri exclaimed. He promptly marched into the elevator once more, with his friends not far behind. Once again, they were waiting for yet another team into enter the room with them, Invisibility or not.

"Think we'll win this one?" Alexis pondered.

"Don't worry, Alexis," the dark-skinned inkling assured, winking. "Win or lose, it's the effort that counts!"

* * *

**A/N: Another chapter down! Thank you all for reading, and here's a reminder: next chapter will be a Hero mode one. Hoped you like this chapter, and Branchwing, out!**


	11. Test Your Strength

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**Most of Marie's and Sheldon's dialogue come from the game, while Marina's and Pearl's dialogue are taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

"_Yayerrrrrrr_! Flight or fight!" Pearl boldly declared upon the reveal of the winner of the latest Splatfest.

"Hooray!" Yuri cheered. "Flight won!"

"And Invisibility lost…" Bonnie muttered, head on the table as she scrolled through the contents of her phone.

"Buh…" Marina murmured upon hearing her friend's announcement.

"Flight rules! We shine like bright jewels, with the right tools to smite fools!" the idol rapped.

"That's my girl," Perry muttered, pulling his phone out to record the huge screen.

"Are you seriously going to write raps for all of your victory speeches?" Marina pondered, putting a hand near her mouth.

"Write raps? Nah. These rhymes come straight off the dome." The short inkling chuckled. "I bet you wish you were invisible right now, huh?" The taller, funny-looking one simply gaped at shock at her, so Pearl continued on to say, "If you participated in the Splatfest, your prizes are waiting in the Square!"

"Well, that's done and done," Inigo said as Off the Hook went on to announce the latest stages. "I've been itching to play Rainmaker again." Soon after he said that, the duo announced that Splat Zones was the latest game mode in ranked battles. "…Or maybe not," he groaned.

"I dunno, I would like to play some Splat Zones," the purple-haired inkling commented. Upon returning his Splatfest tee, he ended up changing into a simple white t-shirt. "They're fun."

While the Rainbow Squids discussed their plans for today, another thing has been in the back of Alexis's mind for a while—when she could continue her quest to save the Great Zapfish. Since she has started, she powered her way through Tentakeel Outpost. Marie was surprised by her skill, but regardless, she called someone else to help them along the way—Sheldon. Alexis was not too thrilled that he was going to help, but he had proven himself useful by supplying her with a special roller. Due to lack of experience, she was splatted several times within the underground hideout of the Octarians, but eventually, she rescued the Zapfish from there.

Now, she wondered if Sheldon had his next weapon ready. By the time she got out of the lair, he had still not finalized the weapon for real-world use. She visited Marie every day since then, and today, she was going to try again.

"Hey, guys?" she spoke up, getting out of her chair. "I'm gonna go solo for a little bit."

"Again?" Roy whined. "You've been going solo quite a bit these days."

"It's only been a few weeks," the young inkling pointed out.

"Still!"

"Let her go," Octavia said to the red-haired inkling. She rubbed her eyes. "I'm fine with it."

"Alright, fine. You can go," the tall inkling gave in. "Just be back before sunset."

"Don't worry." Alexis smiled. "I'll keep an eye on the time."

As she started walking towards the familiar grate, she looked over her shoulder to see if the Rainbow Squids were paying attention to her. They were not, going back to talking to each other again. Smiling, she slipped into the grate to travel to Octo Canyon. When she emerged from the grate, she already had her Hero Suit on, as if it had been bound to her the moment she walked into the canyon. Near the cabin, Marie stood there like she usually did, twirling her umbrella. When she noticed the newcomer, she smiled.

"Hey, Agent 4," she greeted. "I have some news for you."

"Is Sheldon finally done?" the bronze-skinned inkling asked, starry-eyed. "Please tell me he's done!"

"He is," Marie confirmed. "He said he wants you to go to the next kettle as soon as possible."

"Will do!" Crouching in her squid form, she launched into the air, soaring to the next area. She did not dare to look down, as it was a long drop from the air, all the way to the bottom of the canyon. If she forced herself to stop super-jumping, she would be calamari for sure. When she transformed back, she was at the top of a tower, standing on the kettle she revealed beforehand. Without a second thought, she slipped into the entrance.

When she reemerged, she had to squint from the sudden bright light. Lamps shaped like stars dotted the sky, giving the sky a sort of orange hue. Directly in front of her was a slope covering in purple ink, turning into magenta ink by the time the slope reached flat land. She heard the whirling of a drone in the distance, so she looked up to see one carrying a black box. It dropped the box into Alexis's hands, and she opened it. Inside were a pair of familiar-looking guns. _Dualies!_

"OK, take this with you," Sheldon instructed. The short-haired inkling picked them up. "It'll help me gather some practical battle data." She nodded. "These are the hottest weapons in the game right now—the Hero Dualies! While shooting and moving in any direction, you can do a slick dodge roll. You can dodge-roll forward, backward, or side to side. It's totally raw!"

"I use dualies most of the time," Alexis pointed out. "But thanks for the reminder." She winked and began to shoot the crates.

"O-Oh…" Sheldon muttered. "In that case, you already know what to do!"

Once the crates were broken, she moved to the ride rail at the edge of the platform and shot it. A purple, metallic stream of ink shot out of the bulb. She jumped on it, travelling over the magenta ink below.

"You can still use your weapon when riding on top of a rail," Marie informed.

"Fresh." Aiming her dualies at some red balloons that appeared, she started shooting at them until they popped. When she got to the other side, she looked around for something of interest. To the left, she saw yet another ride rail, so she shot it to activate it. She jumped on that one next, disregarding the need to climb up the hill.

"You can also jump while you're riding a ride rail," the inkling over the radio then said. Noticing the rail climb upwards ever-so-slightly, she jumped like Marie advised, landing on the next one. "Don't forget to jump while you're riding rails." She jumped onto a checkpoint, only to see yet another rail appear directly in front of her. She got on that one, prompting the idol to say, "You should be able to grab the squid rings as you ride the rail too." Alexis passed through the floating ring surrounding the ride rail and jumped onto the next platform, where she activated yet another rail. Below the rail was an Octotrooper, which was splatted during her efforts to activate the ride rail.

When Agent 4 jumped onto the next rail, another squid ring appeared, this one floating above it instead of between it. "Time it right and jump through that ring!" Marie egged. In an instant, the bronze-skinned inkling jumped, but she just barely missed the ring. Neither inkling said anything regarding her failure to grab the squid ring, but Alexis went right ahead and splatted the Octotrooper on the next platform. She activated the next ride rail and continued. "Good stuff. Let's keep going."

The short-haired inkling got on yet another ride rail, one that was quite long. "You gotta be careful not to fall off when jumping on winding rails like this," the inkling over the radio advised. _I won't jump off,_ Alexis thought scornfully. _I'm not that dumb._ It led to another floating platform. The lowest area had a ride rail in between two crates. She shot down an Octocopter and jumped onto the tiled floor. She activated the rail and hopped on it, breaking the crates within the path of the rail. Alexis came face-to-face with an Octotrooper, but she quickly disposed of it. She activated the next rail and moved on.

At the next checkpoint, Agent 4 was presented with two ride rails. Shooting one, the other quickly activated. She smiled and hopped on the left one. "Jump to the other rail!" Marie egged. Seeing a squid ring, she did so. Another one, facing diagonally, appeared. Doing a flip, she hopped to the previous rail, just barely going through the next squid ring. She continued to jump back and forth until the end of the rail, where she hopped onto the grate. "OK, now you're just showing off," the idol muttered as she broke a small, orange box. A ticket popped out of the degree, and she happily took it and stuffed it into her pocket.

The next ride rail winded through a narrow space. Squid rings floated above the rail at some points. _I bet I can do these!_ the bronze-skinned inkling challenged herself, a cocky grin spreading across her face. She jumped through them. At a turn, an Octocopter flew past, shooting a glob of magenta ink at her. "Take this!" she exclaimed, jumping on the turn and splatting the Octarian. However, her boasts got the best of her as she fell to the ground, screaming as soon as she realized her mistake. When she respawned, Marie's only reaction was a single sigh of disappointment. Alexis rode the rail once again and hopped onto the next checkpoint.

Turning the bend, the older inkling shouted, "Octoslobs!" At the end of the walkway was an Octotrooper, minding its own business. "Fry 'em up, Agent 4!"

"Will do." Rolling towards the trooper, she focused her aim and took it out pretty quickly. She continued to run down the path until another ride rail crossed her path, this bulb facing sideways. She shot it and watched as the railing stretched out until the end of the platform. _A shortcut!_ Alexis climbed on to it and rode it down to the end of that walkway. She leaped through the ring and rolled onto a shorter ride rail. Hoping onto yet another walkway, she activated the ride rail that winded right above the path. She rode it, shooting the Octotroopers below as they attempted to hit her with the magenta ink. She landed on the end of the path and activated the next rail.

While she rode down the hill, Marie commented, "That looks like fun." She added quietly, "Sometimes I wish I was the one risking my life out there…" When Alexis arrived to the next ride rail and hopped on it, she said, louder, "Keep an eye out for new rails to jump to." The young inkling nodded and hopped through the squid ring onto the rail next to the one she activated. She broke the box in her path and jumped onto a third ride rail, where there were a bunch of squid rings. Though she missed the highest squid ring, she broke the orange box on the tall platform she landed on, where a white, shiny fish popped out.

"What's this?" Alexis asked, dangling it by the tail. She couldn't tell if it was a real fish or a fake one, but she was sure that it was not alive.

"That's a Sardinium!" Sheldon chirped. "It can be used to upgrade the fabulous weapons I give you. The energy contained in these are quite potent. When together, a few of these can enhance the stats of any weapon."

"Fresh," she muttered, putting it in her pocket. "Let's keep going."

She jumped down to the pad below, lighting up a purple color as soon as she put her feet on it. "The Zapfish must be close," the idol concluded. "Onward!" The next ride rail activated was one of the longest yet, winding around strange steel beams dotted with flashing lights. It ended at the base of a tower, leaving for a very high fall if she were to fall off. Octotroopers patrolled around pillars, looking for any squids to splat. "Baddies!" Marie exclaimed once she noticed them. "Steam these clams!"

Immediately, Alexis splatted the first Octotrooper that noticed her, though it managed to shoot out a bit of magenta ink. Sticking on to her clothes, she submerged into the purple ink to shake it off. She searched for someway to climb the pillars of varying heights, though she was slowed down by the incoming Octarians. She dodged their slow bullets and soon found a wooden platform with the bulb of a ride rail on top of it. She activated it and quickly climbed onto it before anymore of them could rush towards her.

"Going _up_!" Marie exclaimed as the rail winded around the pillars, alerting the Octotroopers stationed on top of them. She hid inside the railing in an attempt to dodge their ink, but soon enough, she found herself falling off of railing, right in front of an Octotrooper. It sprayed ink into her face, causing her to let out a cry of pain as it got into her eyes. Holding down on the trigger of the dualies, she shot it, with its defeat marked by a gargled cry. "A launchpad appeared," the inkling over the radio informed. "Though, you might want to just stand there until you can see again. I can't afford for you to just walk off and get splatted."

"Even better, I'll hide in the ink." Transforming into a squid, Alexis slipped into the purple ink below her feet. Magenta spots danced in her vision as the ink faded away. Though her eyes still ached, she could see enough to see the swirling ink at the center of the tallest pillar. She swam into it and launched into a ride rail above her. She rode on it, her smile growing as the zapfish came within view. When she came within range, she fired ink at the barrier surrounding it and made a dash to grab it. Putting the dualies in her belt, she snatched it from the pedestal and held it tightly, cheering as it squirmed in her arms. "I got it!"

"Then, away you go." Agent 4 proceeded to super-jump out of the base, adjusting her eyes to the light as it hit her skin.

With the zapfish still in her arms, she heard Sheldon say, "Let me check your weapon log… Yup! Data's coming through." While the bronze-skinned inkling smiled, he continued on to say, "Oh, man. This is really good stuff. The more data you get me, the quicker I can finalize my retail version, so keep it up! But remember—this is just a loaner. I'm not running a charity here! Good luck, Agent 4!"

Alexis jumped down to the boss kettle, where Marie was leaning against a vine-covered pillar outside of it. Setting her umbrella down, the pale-haired inkling took the zapfish from her.

"Great job, Agent 4," she complimented, smiling. "I'll send the zapfish back from here." The girl in the kimono turned around and started walking to the entrance of Suction Cup Lookout.

"Hey, Marie, before you leave…" Alexis spoke up, taking a few steps towards her. "Can you tell me about this Agent 3 gal?"

"Agent 3?" The idol turned to face the agent again. "Well, she saved the Great Zapfish the first time it went missing. The Cap'n recruited her. Obviously, Callie and I couldn't save it because we were hosting Inkopolis News at the time. However, when the Cap'n got kidnapped by DJ Octavio, we came to her aid. During the final battle, we were able to free him and save the Great Zapfish! We couldn't have done it without Agent 3."

"So basically… Agent 3 is the best?"

"I guess you could put it that way. But don't worry, you're also pretty great… and you have better hygiene."

"What does Agent 3's hygiene have to do with anything?"

Marie shrugged. "It doesn't."

"A different subject now—how close is Sheldon to finishing the next weapon?"

"Last time I checked, he's almost done. So…come back tomorrow?"

"Alright. Can't wait."

And thus, Agent 4's adventures came to an end… for now


	12. Teacher's Pet

_Bonnie's PoV_

"Alright, squids, I have two very important announcements," Roy announced, slamming his fist down on the lunch table. "One, my birthday's on Tuesday, and I expect a nice party for my 17th birthday."

"We know," Bonnie mumbled. "You've been telling us that since the beginning of week."

"Let me finish," the red-haired inkling snapped. "The second thing is, I got the job!"

"At Starfish Drinks?!" Yuri gasped.

"Yeah, that's the one," Roy confirmed.

"Congrats!" everyone at the table then exclaimed.

"Thank you, thank you." He stood up and did a little bow before sitting back down. "My first day's on Monday after school," the inkling then explained. "Monday, Wednesday, Friday. That's my schedule."

"Pretty convenient you don't have a shift on your birthday," Perry commented. All he did in response was give a small smile.

In the corner of her eye, Bonnie noticed a teacher lurking near them. She knew this teacher—it was her chemistry teacher last year. Mr. Nema was a rather carefree sea slug, preferring to lay out in the sun doing nothing in his free time. Despite this, he is rather skilled in the chemistry department, always willing to help students when they need it. The beige-skinned inkling in particular was one of his favorites.

"Ah, Miss Bonnie Largha!" he suddenly greeted, slithering over to behind her seat. "Nice to see you."

The blue-haired girl could only muster a half-smile. "Nice to see you, too."

"Well, I'm glad I found you, because I need your help," Mr. Nema explained.

"_My _help?" she breathed, surprised by his offer.

"Yes! You were one of my star students last year, after all."

"Well, what do you need?"

"The kids in my eighth period are complete fools! It's only been a week, and they've already broken two glass vials. Just in that class! One group decided to stick their hands while their burner was running, and they had to be treated for their burns."

"Yikes…" Inigo muttered.

"Anyways, I would like an extra hand today to whip them into shape." The slug extended a long-fingered hand to Bonnie. "So, what do you say? Wanna help?"

"Hmm… Sure." She smiled. "Why not."

"Great!" Mr. Nema started to crawl past her. "See you soon!"

The inkling said nothing more, but she did garner some stares from her friends.

"…Can't say I'm really surprised." Via was the first to speak, the orange-haired girl scratching the back of her head. "Mr. Nema's a smart slug, and you're a smart squid."

"I dunno, helping teachers is kinda lame," Perry added. Bonnie frowned upon hearing this statement. She always hated feeling like an outcast. Realizing this, his purple eyes then locked with his glasses-wearing friend, and he shrugged and said, "But I guess it works for you."

Everyone else gave their nods of approval. "Thanks, squids," she muttered, and the Rainbow Squids continued to eat their lunch quietly.

When the bell for eighth period rang, Bonnie immediately sprung from her seat in her math class and quickly walked to her old chemistry classroom. Mr. Nema greeted her and let her sit in one of the stools he had. She sat there awkwardly as the students poured into the class. Roughly half of the class were inklings like herself, while the rest were a variety of sea creatures.

"Hello, class!" the sea slug greeted. No one said anything in response. "…Today, I have invited a former student of mine to help you all out in the lab today."

"Hi," Bonnie greeted. "My name's Bonnie." Again, no one said a single word. They all simply stared at her. She frowned. _Class was more fun last year._

"Today…" Mr. Nema put one of his long fingers on the chalkboard behind him. "We will be heating up a piece of metal. I want you to follow the procedure and record your observations. I'll explain what exactly happened afterwards. Get to it, and no seahorseplay!"

The class was slow to rise to their feet, and she watched as everyone travelled to their lab tables. The class was quite big, with enough people to fill up all of the tables. Bonnie hopped off her stool and put on an apron and goggles. She walked to the first table. On one side of the table was a pair of female inklings with the same double bun as her. The other pair consisted of a jellyfish and a fairy shrimp.

"Jelbert doesn't speak Inkling," the fairy shrimp pointed out. Judging by the voice, he was a boy. "So, I'll translate anything he says."

Jelbert turned to face Bonnie, who stared at her with small, yet beady eyes. "…Okay." She cleared her throat and then asked, "You guys need help?"

"I got this," one of the inklings snapped, getting out a burner. The brown-skinned inkling plugged it in and turned it on, then grabbing the lighter. Within an instant, a blue light shot out of the top of it. The other inkling prepared to strike her mocha-colored hand through the flame, but Bonnie grabbed it before she could do so.

"Don't do that!" the beige-skinned inkling scolded. "Do you want to get burned?"

"I've done it before, and I didn't," the mocha-skinned inkling argued. "I'm not as slow as the lovebirds over there." She pointed to two other inklings, who were hitting on each other instead of doing their work. "Camille tried to grab something that fell into the flame, and now she's in bandages."

"Her boyfriend's just stupid," added the girl who lit the burner. "He cranked the burner up on full blast and put his hand right over it."

"Still. You could get burned," Bonnie pointed out. "And that's not good."

"I did it!" the fairy shrimp then cried out. "I lit the burner!" In his feathery arms, he swung a lighter almost as big as him around. Jelbert lightly patted him on the back, and he made some small noises in response. He dropped it, too. All the blue-haired inkling could do was nod.

"Well, this is lit," the brown-skinned inkling concluded. "Time to drop the metal into this." In her hands was a crucible and what appeared to be some sort of copper. It fell into the small bucket with a clink, and then she set it over the burner. "There."

Bonnie let go of her partner's hand. "If you guys need any help, call me over."

"I'm certain I won't need it," the mocha-skinned girl growled.

The beige-skinned inkling walked to the next table. At this table, there was a pair between an inkling with a buzz cut and a lobster. The other pair was a crab with bandaged claws and a sea urchin.

"What happened to you?" she asked the crab.

"Fire happened," the sea urchin answered. "Rob thought it was a good idea to hold the crucible in place, so I turned up the heat."

_Mr. Nema was right, these people really are idiots_, Bonnie thought, letting out a sigh. "Why did you do that in the first place?" she asked him.

"To make a statement," he replied, holding up an index finger.

She said nothing more on the matter, now asking, "Do any of you need any help?"

"Nah, we've got it going," answered the inkling with the buzz cut. The lighter poked out of his fist, and he gave a confident smile as he stared at the blue flame. The lobster, on the other hand, was holding the burner. This caught her eye.

"You're not suppose to hold it!" Bonnie hissed at him. "You could get burned!"

"What if it falls over?" the lobster asked.

"It's on a flat surface. It won't fall over unless you try to."

"Hey, accidents happen."

"…Just stay away from the burner. Only touch it when you have to adjust it."

The lobster put a claw behind his red, shiny head. "Fine..."

"And what about you two?" Bonnie then asked the sea urchin and the crab.

"I'm certain we don't need help," the urchin snapped. "We're going to get it running sooner or later."

"Okay, okay." The blue-haired inkling threw her hands up. _I was just making sure._ She awkwardly stepped past the table, soon arriving at the third one. All the students at this table were female inklings. One pair consisted of a long-haired inkling with olive skin and green eyes, while the other was a short-haired inkling with pale skin and orange eyes. The other pair consisted of yet another long-haired inkling, this one with golden skin and blue eyes, and the other girl had pigtails, bronze skin, and pink eyes.

"Do you use a Classic Squiffer?" the girl with the pigtails asked.

"…Yes, why?" _Have I fought her before in turf war?_

"I think my friend fought against you in the last Splatfest," she replied. "I remember that she mentioned that she fought against someone named Bonnie."

"Fresh, but that's not what I'm here for. I'm here to help you all with chemistry stuff."

"We got this! Don't worry!" the inkling with golden skin assured. She stood on the tips of her toes for a few moments, looking inside the crucible. "It doesn't look any different."

"You have to be patient," Bonnie stated. "It takes a while for some things to heat up."

"But I don't wanna be patient…" the girl whined. "I just wanna get this over with."

"Too bad." Her blue eyes glanced over at the other pair at the third table. "What about you?"

"It's going," the girl with the pale skin stated.

"Oh, have I told you about how hot the squids on the baskfishball team are?" the inkling with olive skin suddenly chirped, leaning over to her partner. Bonnie sighed, digging her face into her hand. The blue-haired inkling then decided to go to the fourth table, where Mr. Nema was. He was examining a malfunctioning burner. When he noticed the former student with navy eyes, he waved.

"Hello, Bonnie!" he greeted. "How are my students?"

"They keep telling me they're fine." She looked over her shoulder at the first three tables. Jelbert was holding the fairy shrimp by his tail, and now he flailed his arms over the crucible. The two dark-skinned girls were on their phones, not paying attention to the burner. The sea urchin had even worse behavior—he was sitting on the table, right next to the burner. The crab simply frowned at him, weakly clenching his claws. The inkling with the buzz cut and the lobster were actually doing their work, removing the crucible from the heat, as well as the pair between the long-haired inkling and the short-haired inkling. The final pair continued to gossip about the baskfishball team. "But I don't think they are."

"Not surprised, but they seem to be better than a few days ago," the sea slug commented. He sighed as he picked up the faulty burner and started to slither to the closet. "You should check up on them, though."

"Will do." Bonnie saluted and walked back over to the first table. She grabbed a ruler and started to tap it on the table. The four students now looked over at her. "What are you doing?" she asked, her voice low.

"I'm trying to grab the thing," the fairy shrimp started, "but Jelbert won't let me!"

She stepped next to the jellyfish, causing him to inch closer to the wall. Her hand hovered around the metal bucket momentarily, checking to see if it was cool. Once it was cleared, she grabbed it and set it down on the base of the stand. Jelbert dropped the fairy shrimp, causing him to fall onto the table. He whimpered as soon as he made contact, and then he crawled over to the crucible, jumping onto the base.

"Thanks," the shrimp thanked.

"No problem." She walked over to the other side of the table and squeezed between the two girls in order to turn the burner off. She smiled, saying, "You must have forgot about this."

The mocha-skinned inkling looked over at her and growled, "Hey, you didn't need to do that."

"Yeah, we were gonna get to it eventually," the brown-skinned inkling added.

"You must pay attention to the clock, though," the beige-skinned inkling advised. "Spend too much time, and you'll be stuck here after school."

The brown-skinned inkling started to gape upon hearing this. "Seriously?! I have cheer practice every day!" She then grumbled, "I can't afford to be late," and slouched onto the table.

"Then it's best you get to work." Blue eyes fell onto the steaming crucible. "Though, you can't do much at the moment. All you can do is wait."

"Ugh…" The mocha-skinned inkling's eyes returned to her phone.

"And you," Bonnie asserted, swinging around the second table to face the sea urchin, "need to get off of there."

"No." The sea urchin crossed his arms and looked down at the inkling with his singular green eye.

"I tried to tell him to get off," Rob, the crab, commented. "But my claws still hurt from the burn." He snapped them a few times before adding, "So I can't pull him off."

"Wait, _pull_ him off?" the inkling repeated. "Won't that hurt him?"

"Eh, I'm used to it," the sea urchin said.

"You should still get off the table," the blue-haired inkling pointed out.

"Make me."

She grabbed the urchin by the waist and heaved him off the table. She set him down on the floor and grunted once the strain on her muscles was gone. "There. I made you."

"I can just get back on."

"I'll tell the teacher if you do."

"I'm not scared of him." He hopped back on the table, and everything on it shook a little bit.

The lobster grabbed the crucible, which almost fell over from the earthquake. "Woah, watch it!"

Bonnie sighed and walked over to the back door. "Mr. Nema?" she called, knocking it. "We have some bad students here."

"We do?" The sea slug pushed the door open, the new burner in his hands. "Where?" She pointed to the sea urchin, who was flipping off the teacher. "Mr. Sean Echino! How dare you!" He looked back at the inkling. "Grab my phone, please." Bonnie ran over to his desk, grabbed his phone, and then ran back to him and gave him the school phone. After a few brief moments, he said, "Hello. I'd like to report Sean Echino for inappropriate behavior…Okay, thank you." He put down the phone and demanded, "Go to the office, Echino."

"Fine." Sean jumped off the table and stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

"…That was anti-climactic," commented a student the blue-haired inkling had not met with. The other students in the class murmured in agreement.

"Well, that's all dealt with," Mr. Nema concluded. "Now, other than Matt and Trevor, is there anyone else not done?" A few people raised their hands. "Well, since most of you are done, I'll explain what happened anyways. Anyone who is done, go back to your seats."

Bonnie walked over to Rob and took the crucible off of its stand. "It's cool now," she said. "You can go back to your seat if you want."

"Thank you!" exclaimed the crab. He ran back to the main area of the classroom.

The beige-skinned inkling examined the lab area. Everyone left was doing what they were supposed to be doing, and a small smile appeared on her face. Though they may be bad students, perhaps her presence put them on their best behavior after all. She continued to stride around the tables, keeping an eye on everyone.

After the bell rang and class was over, Mr. Nema asked, "Miss Bonnie, could you stay for just a few extra moments?"

"Sure." The inkling already had her backpack on, and she adjusted her glasses as she focused on the sea slug. She sat on the stool from earlier, the smile still on her face. "What do you need?"

"I just want to thank you," the teacher started. "Even though it's only been a week since school started, everyone was on their best behavior today. Except Sean, as you saw earlier, but the horseplay has gone down from earlier this week. And it's all thanks to you."

Bonnie felt the heat of embarrassment creep up her face, but she tried to ignore it as she responded, "How do you know they won't return to their normal antics tomorrow?"

"Instinct, little scholar. Instinct."

She giggled and got off the stool. "Well, I should be going."

"Farewell, Bonnie!" Mr. Nema started waving as she stepped closer and closer towards the door. "May you have a successful future!"

* * *

**A/N: Hello! Honestly, this chapter was the hardest to write yet, as for the first half of the week, I wasn't sure whenever I should go with my idea or not. I did, and this is result. Considering that it was written in about two day, I apologize if it feels rushed. On the bright side, school's out for me, so I should have more time to write now. Branchwing, out!**


	13. Flowers for Her

_Inigo's PoV_

The inkling with the ponytail put the wheel of the Carbon Roller to the ground, shaking his head. On the screen in front of him was the horribly unbalanced map of his latest match. Two of the inklings on Inigo's team had disappeared suddenly, leaving him and an inkling with a side cut named Roman alone against four enemy inklings. The map was covered in orange, with only a small portion of deep blue on his side of the map.

"If only those two squids weren't cowards," Roman muttered under his breath, sweat pooling from his pale face. Like Inigo, he used a roller, but his was the Flingza Roller. "We could have won if they were there."

"Well…" The indigo-eyed inkling lifted his head. "It's having fun that counts." He gave a smile, though his teammate was not impressed.

"I'm leaving." The pale-skinned inkling walked out of the room they were in, dragging his roller right behind him. Inigo figured he should do the same, thus following him into the lobby. Soon, he lost him amongst the crowd, but the fair-skinned inkling had other plans in mind. He stored his Carbon Roller back in the room the Rainbow Squids rented out and left the Deca Tower.

_Where now? _he asked himself, taking out the band holding his hair in place. Two medium-length tentacles fell over his shoulders, and he put the hair band on his wrist. He didn't plan to do anything else today. He had done turf wars and ranked battles since this morning, and even that became boring after a little while. He soon found his feet walking towards the direction of his house. _Home, I guess_.

He continued walking, and walking, and walking, until he stopped. He lifted his head to see an apartment complex, not his own townhouse. However, this building was the one Geneva resided in ever since she moved to Inkopolis. Remembering this sent a pang of sadness throughout Inigo's body. She left the Rainbow Squids for a vacation over a month ago. Yet, it has felt like an eternity.

The inkling picked a flower from the garden sitting outside the complex. The daffodil was a nice yellow color, the petals of it fanning out to highlight the bell-like center. His indigo eyes fell onto the entrance, as if it were compelling him to come inside. He acted on this instinct and slipped into the building. The receptionist stared at him with bored eyes as he walked to the elevators. Inigo pressed a button, and quickly did the doors slide open. He went inside, and as soon as they closed, he took the moment of isolation to change his ink back to his usual indigo color.

When he stepped into the hallway, he started walking towards the direction of Geneva's apartment. The beige walls and the dark doors made everything feel like an old photograph to him… except he was a burst of color in the sepia. He continued walking until he got to her apartment. He slid the daffodil into the mail slot and turned around to leave when he heard the door open behind him.

In the doorway stood an inkling of Yuri's height with leafy-green hair tied into a ponytail and eyes the same green color. He wore only a white robe lined with yellow, and in between his fair fingers were some letters and the daffodil. _Asher_.

"Inigo Sable?" the man marveled. "I haven't seen you in quite a while."

"Same," the other inkling echoed. "Though, I didn't expect to see you here. I thought you went on vacation with Geneva."

Asher shook his head. "Her mentor—y'know, for her electrician job—only gave her the one ticket. I think it was just the two of them that went on the vacation."

"Really?" _I thought it was a family vacation._

The older inkling nodded. "It's kinda weird, because she barely told me anything about it. Has she told you anything?" Inigo shook his head in response. "Cod, this just makes it even weirder," he muttered. He turned around and started to head deeper into the apartment. "You can come stay with me for a little bit, if you don't mind," Asher offered, looking over his shoulder at the indigo-haired inkling.

"Sure." He stepped into the apartment and slipped off his silver shoes. "I don't have any other plans, anyways."

Asher slumped onto the couch and pulled up a coffee table, resting his feet on it. "Come join me," he said, patting the cushion next to him.

"Okay." The couch the two now sat on was light grey and was pushed up against the wall. A television was sitting on a table up against the opposite wall, and on it was a soap opera. "Didn't know you watched these," Inigo commented, pointing to the screen.

"There's so much drama!" the green-haired inkling enthused. "You see, earlier in the episode, Monica caught her boyfriend cheating on her. And now, she's utterly betrayed." The TV displayed a female inkling screaming at a male one. "Oh! I think she's breaking up with him now!" he exclaimed, now sitting up straight.

"Can't I change the channel?"

"Not now! This is the most exciting part!"

The fair-skinned inkling sighed and leaned back into the soft back of the couch. This was going to be a long day, for sure.

Once the credits started to roll on the screen, Inigo felt a remote fall into his lap. He looked up at Asher, who was giving a gentle smile. _Finally_. He sat up and started surfing through the channels on the TV. He stopped at a channel displaying a turf war tournament.

"So… what brings you here?" the older inkling asked, the daffodil still resting in his hand.

"I don't know, to be honest," the younger inkling admitted. "I was just walking, when I found myself outside the complex. Then I saw that flower you're holding. So, I picked it and brought it here." He frowned. "I know your sister isn't here right now, but… I just keep thinking about her. More so than any of my other friends."

"I think we're all thinking about her," Asher remarked. "I don't know about you, but I'm worried. Worried that she might get hurt."

"Do you know when she'll get back?" Inigo asked. The green-haired inkling shook his head. "I hate how she's being so vague with all of this." _You're her brother; I'm her ex-boyfriend; we should be the people that she trusts most in all of Inkopolis, _he added silently.

"Me too," the other inkling agreed. "She usually isn't this secretive."

Taking his phone out of his pocket, Inigo started to mess around with it. He found himself scrolling through his contacts and stopped over Geneva's name. His shaky thumb hovered over the text displaying it. One touch and a variety of options would pop it. He bit his tongue, trying to distract himself from the memories of their break-up. With a gentle touch, he pressed Geneva's name, and three main options came up—call, text, and video chat. He glanced next to him to see Asher, leaning in to see what he was doing.

"I've tried calling her, texting her…" he commented, "but she never answers."

"She might answer me," Inigo argued.

The green-haired inkling shook his head. "If she won't answer me, then I doubt she'll answer you."

"At least let me try."

"Oh, alright. Go for video chat."

Inigo pressed the video chat button, and the screen went black, save for a recording of him on the corner of the screen. The phone started to ring. It continued to ring, yet still, no one picked up. After a minute, the screen returned to the contacts. The indigo-haired inkling cursed and threw his phone onto the coffee table. _Why won't she answer?_

"Told ya," Asher said.

Inigo did not answer, picking up his phone and stuffing it back into his pocket. He started twirling one of his loose tentacles around his fingers, staring down at the floor. Even with the exciting battle going on in the background, he was not too interested in it. He could not understand Geneva's silence.

"…Thanks for letting me stay," he muttered, getting up for the couch and adverting the green-haired inkling's gaze. He started walking towards the door.

"…You want tea?" the older inkling asked. "Or coffee?"

"I'm fine, thank you." Inigo slipped his shoes back on.

"…Well, I guess this is where we say goodbye." Asher walked over to the entrance, still holding the daffodil meant for Geneva. "I'll give this flower to her when she gets back…if it hasn't wilted away by then."

The indigo-haired inkling leaned against the wall, still frowning. "Bye." Without saying another word, Inigo left the apartment and started his descent down the building. A short time later, he emerged from it and started running down the street. His destination was now his home, where he could rest. His parents were still working, he believed, so he could rest in peace. There, he could think.

It felt as if not much time has passed at all when he arrived. He got out the key to the townhouse and opened the door, rushing inside to slam it shut. He ran upstairs to his room, where he launched himself onto the bed. He dug his face into the pillow, letting out a muffled groan. He lifted his head and saw a photo he had framed, sitting on his nightstand. He grabbed it and looked at it. It was a picture of himself and Geneva at Wahoo World last year. They both had huge smiles on their faces, and they were decorated with the various merchandise available at the amusement park. Cotton candy, one blue and one pink, could be found in their free hands.

What happy times they were.

His hands started to shake again, and his face fell into the pillow. He felt something wet fall down his face, so he lifted his head a little bit and wiped his eyes. _Tears_. At least no one was here to see him cry. What would they think of him then? The level-headed Inigo, crying over something so trivial? It was something hard to fathom. The memories of his breakup with Geneva then started to flood into his mind.

* * *

_"Inigo," said a familiar voice. They were in the middle of Inkopolis Plaza, walking towards Inkopolis Tower. Even when activity in the area was dying, inklings still visited from time to time. At that moment, the boy turned around to see green eyes staring into his indigo ones. "Can I talk to you?"_

_"What about?" he asked._

_Geneva's eyes started to advert his gaze. "…Something important."_

Being vague again, huh? _Inigo thought. He always teased her on how she always played hard-to-get. She acted like she hated it, but it her true thoughts were obvious through the blush that would spread across her cheeks. "Alright."_

_The two inklings walked down to an abandoned alleyway littered with super sea snail shells. Spike had moved out of here not too long ago, and without his presence, it has felt odd being here ever since. Luckily, no one comes here anymore, except for the occasional oblivious guy. Inigo leaned against the wall, putting a hand on the cement. His eyes peaked with curiosity on what they were going to talk about._

_"Okay, now to what I want to talk about," the green-haired girl started. "Look, I've been thinking long and hard about this, so please, don't take this personally."_

_"Thinking about what?"_

_"Well… things haven't been going so great lately," Geneva admitted. "When's the last time we laughed together? When's the last time we had quality time together?"_

_She had valid points. The last time they really enjoyed themselves was months ago, though it didn't feel like very long. It had been a terribly long time since he'd last heard her laugh, despite all his efforts. Her job had become increasingly demanding, to the point where even he did not see her all that often anymore. "What are you getting at?"_

_The shorter inkling gulped and confessed, "I-I'm breaking up with you."_

_Only five words had been said, yet it felt like the world was about to crash and burn. "Breaking up with me?!" he immediately blurted out. He could not believe it. "We could work on it! Things can get better!" He couldn't lose her! He thought everything was going perfectly!_

_"It's not you, Inigo, it's me," stated Geneva. "I fell in love with you, but I've fallen out of it now." She frowned. "I don't think things can get better. It never will." The inkling wearing a beanie lowered her head, a shadow falling over her eyes. "You aren't meant to be with me." She turned around and started to walk out of the alley._

_"W-We can still be friends," he cried, voice cracking. "R-Right?" Tears started to fall down his face. _Stop crying, _he told himself, to no avail._

_"Of course." She turned around, giving a half-hearted smile. "You'll always be my friend. But friends are as far as we will ever get."_

_Now, Geneva truly left the alleyway, leaving Inigo alone. The fair-skinned inkling fell to his knees, covering his face. No one could see him cry now, no one could hear him sob now. He truly was heartbroken. The love of his life was gone, and now he only had one question:_

_Why?_

* * *

The pillow was now drenched in all the tears Inigo had cried until he ran dry of them. He sat up and saw the picture taken at Wahoo World. It had fallen over from the shifting weight, and now he picked it up again. Though his eyes stung, he could still make out the smiles on their faces. Now, this picture had been on his nightstand for too long. He opened his closet and pulled a cardboard box out of it. Inside were other photos of him, including baby pictures and pictures of his costumes from past Halloweens. He dug through them until he got to the very bottom, where he stuffed the one he was holding inside. Quickly, he closed it and pushed it back into the closet before slamming it shut.

He leaned against the closet door and pulled out his phone. A text from Yuri popped up on the screen, asking if he wanted to do a few Splat Zones matches today. He replied no and put it away. He was in no state to do anything else today. Not after the disaster at Geneva's apartment.

Inigo soon walked downstairs and started to make some tea. Once he finished, he held a cup of it in his hands, and then he heard the door unlock. Turning to face it, he saw his mother enter the room.

"Inigo?" she marveled.

He managed to muster a smile. "Hey, Mom."

"It's nice to see you, but I thought you'd be out doing turf wars."

"I was, but I'm just not in the mood today."

"Is something wrong?"

Inigo shook his head. "No, everything's fine." Except it wasn't.

* * *

**A/N: Hey there! This chapter is just a little later than usual, since I was having issues submitting it. It seemed to be fixed after I tried again after sending a message to support, but I still have no idea what happened there. Anyways, this chapter is a little sad in my opinion, but I hope you enjoyed it! The next two weeks will be a little weird, since I'm going on vacation! I will still have my laptop with me, but we're leaving and coming back next Sunday and the following Sunday respectively, so I probably won't be able to post at my normal time. So, the next chapters will be posted on the next two Mondays. Since the next two chapters go hand-in-hand, there will probably be three chapters in two weeks! With that out of the way, Branchwing, out!**


	14. Party Planners

_Perry's PoV_

On this day, September 12th, it was Roy's birthday. He made sure everyone heard about it, wearing a shirt that read 'It's my birthday!' to school today. Per Perry's suggestion, he even started to put up posters declaring the special occasion. All they garnered were a few odd looks, deflating his ego. However, after school, the rest of the Rainbow Squids had something else in mind.

"I'm surprised at how much money you managed to pull together to rent out the baskfishball stadium," Bon-Bon commented, looking at a receipt the purple-haired inkling had given her. Roy himself was at baskfishball practice, though the others were at their usual place in Inkopolis Square.

"I got Marie to come, too," Perry added. "Took a lot of money and bribing, but I managed it."

"That's amazing!" Yuri marveled.

"Doesn't he like Callie better, though?" Inigo pointed out.

"Callie's missing, remember?" Alexis rebutted. "She can't come. At all."

"We know," the blue-haired inkling snapped. The young inkling opened her mouth as if to say something, but no words came out of her mouth. She sighed and leaned back in the chair. "But, I think we should all be heading over to the stadium now."

"Yeah, Marie could already be there!" Yuri agreed.

"Then, let's go," Octavia said, getting off of her chair. "And either way, we still need to make sure all the decorations are there before Roy comes. It would be a lackluster party otherwise!"

The rest of the inklings agreed and soon followed suit, and they began to walk to the stadium. It was not too terribly long of a walk there, and soon, they were at Goby Arena.

"Perry… this is a bask_et_ball stadium, not a bask_fish_ball one," Bonnie pointed out once they got there.

"Hey, it's also used for baskfishball," Perry argued. "Besides, they're almost the same sport, except one uses hoops and the other uses volunteer basking sharks."

"Let's just get inside," Inigo said.

Goby Arena wasn't too terribly big of a stadium, with the actual court being rather small. However, it had a huge amount of seats, complete with two entrances to accommodate for all the people that can fit in it. The jumbotron overhead was turned off, showing nothing on the black screens. Sponsors were all over the place, which made sense given the popularity of it. It really is fresh!

Perry had also made sure to rent out the VIP section of the seats to ensure the best view of Marie. Nearby were two white tables he had brought the day before, and of course, they were left untouched. In the central court, a few workers were setting up a stage for the idol, complete with a poster featuring her face. Suddenly, the jumbotron flickered to life, displaying flashing colors before settling on the court.

"Hey, she's not here yet," Alexis commented.

"And we still need decorations!" Via added. "There should be lights everywhere—preferably red ones. Oh, and we should get those cutouts depicting the basking sharks and the balls and hang them up everywhere. And red balloons! They'd match Roy perfectly!"

"What about a disco ball?" Bonnie suggested. "We could hang it up somewhere."

"We already have the jumbotron," Inigo pointed out. "And, since we're all sitting in one place, only one side of it should be showing Marie."

"…And the other sides could be red and flashy!" the orange-haired inkling exclaimed. "Great idea!"

"We'd still need other decorations, though," the blue-haired inkling then pointed out.

"Yeah, I know," Octavia said. "There should be a party store near here, so who wants to go with me?"

"I'll go," the indigo-haired inkling replied.

"Me too," replied Bon-Bon.

"Any of you three going?" she then asked the others.

"I kinda have to stay here," Perry responded. "Greetin' Marie, stuff like that. I am the squid to fund this whole thing."

"I'm not going," Yuri replied. "Stores are kinda boring."

"I just don't wanna go," Alexis said.

"Do ya have money?" the purple-haired inkling asked the group.

"Yeah." The orange-haired inkling got out her wallet and pulled out 2,500G. "This should be enough, right?"

"I dunno, that isn't a lot of money," Perry pointed out.

"Party decorations aren't that expensive," Inigo argued. "We'll be fine."

"Oh, alright. But don't say I didn't warn ya if ya run out of money."

"Alright, then we'll be on our way," Octavia announced. She, Inigo, and Bonnie began to walk out of the stadium, with Via shouting, "We'll be back in a bit!"

"See you soon!" the dark-skinned inkling called as they left. Once they were gone, he turned to face Perry and Alexis and asked, "So, what now? We get a cake?"

"Cake!" the pale-skinned inkling cried. "I forgot about that!"

"I can go buy a cake," Alexis offered.

"OK." Perry got out his wallet and pulled out 10,000G. "This should be enough for a nice one," he explained as he gave it to the young inkling. "Roy's favorite is red velvet, so try to get one in that flavor if you can."

"…And if the bakery doesn't have any?" Alexis asked.

"Chocolate is the way to go!" Yuri exclaimed.

"Alright." The bronze-skinned inkling put the cash in her pocket and gave a thumbs-up. "I'll be back as soon as I can." With that, she left the stadium, leaving only Perry and Yuri alone.

The purple-haired inkling sighed and plopped down onto the chair next to where Roy would be sitting. _What now?_ All they could do now was wait for someone to come. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and started to scroll through Squidsagram. Of course, Roy had made several posts announcing his birthday. The most recent one was with his fellow baskfishball players. Perry smiled. _At least he got his wish._

After several minutes passed, he heard footsteps coming closer and closer to him. Soon, a shadow lingered over him, and he looked up to see a fair-skinned inkling with pale grey hair and starry yellow eyes. She was wearing a black-and-green dress. On the other side of him was Yuri, with his headphones resting around his neck. He gave a wink, and Perry's purple eyes then drifted over to Marie.

"You're Perry Sculpin, right?" the idol asked.

Perry put his phone back into his pocket and rose to his feet. "Right," he confirmed and extended a hand. "Nice to see you."

"And, nice to meet you." The two inklings shook heads, and Marie dipped her head. "I should be warming up, now," she said. "I'll be seeing you later." Before leaving, the grey-haired inkling did her signature pose—waving her hands around while standing on one leg. "And stay fresh!"

Even later, another voice spoke up. "Hey, guys." Perry and Yuri, who were just on their phones, looked up to see Alexis holding a big, circular cake with white frosting. It was decorated with red four-pointed stars, and on the top of it were lettering that read, 'Happy Birthday Roy!'. "Where should I put this?" the bronze-skinned inkling asked.

"The table," Yuri replied.

"Where's the box?" Perry suddenly asked.

"On the table," Alexis responded. "So, should I put it on the other table, or the one the box is on?"

"It doesn't matter. We got a cake, that's all that matters."

"OK." The pale-skinned inkling watched as the young inkling set down the cake on the open table. She then took a box of red candles out of the cake box and asked, "What about these?"

"Don't put 'em in now. Gotta let Roy look at that cake in all its glory."

"OK." Alexis put the box of candles down on the table before walking over to the seats the Rainbow Squids were designated to sit in. She sat behind Perry and leaned back in her seat, hopping onto her phone like the older inklings were doing.

More time passed, and Octavia announced, "We're back!" All three squids turned around to look at the group of newcomers. Of course, Via was holding the most bags, and they were filled with party decorations. "It ended up being more money than I thought," the wavy-haired inkling admitted. "So, everyone pitched in to pay for it."

_I told ya!_ Perry boasted silently, a smirk coming across his face. "We got everything, so let's start hangin' them."

"Yeah. Roy should be done with baskfishball practice soon," Inigo agreed.

"Has Marie come yet?" Bonnie asked.

"She's here," Yuri replied. "She said she was gonna warm up, though."

"The main attraction is here. Good," mused Octavia. "Now, let's get this party ready!"

"Yeah!" exclaimed everyone else.

The Rainbow Squids took the time to hang up decorations all across Goby Arena. Each of them split up, taking at least one decoration to themselves. Of course, when one of them finished early, they came to someone else's aid, or when one of them needed help, someone else came to their aid. In the end, the arena matched Octavia's vision rather well. Cutouts of balls and basking sharks were strung up around the walls of the stadium, and they even lined the tables, which were now covered in a red, plastic tablecloth depicting white cartoon squids. Balloons colored red, black, and white floated around the stadium, with many hung down by weights covered in red tinfoil. All sides of the jumbotron except the front began to flash a variety of colors, illuminating the darkened stadium in a rainbow.

"Looks fresh," Yuri commented once they were all done. He turned to face the wavy-haired inkling and said, "I knew we could count on ya," giving a fist bump to her in the process.

"What about me?" Perry grumbled. "I'm the one who rented out the stadium in the first place. _And_ got Marie to come."

"Don't worry." The dark-skinned inkling winked. "You did great, too."

"Look!" Bonnie gasped. "Marie's coming out!"

Indeed, the idol did. Marie strutted onto the stage, waving to the Rainbow Squids. She took the microphone and commented, "Well, this audience is much smaller than normal." She gave an awkward smile. "But, I still have to give you a show."

"Are you gonna wait until Roy's here?" Inigo shouted after she finished.

"Well, I _could_, but wouldn't it be more exciting if he came while I was singing?" Marie argued.

The indigo-haired inkling paused for a moment, and then nodded. "…I guess you have a point."

"We don't know when he's coming, though," Via then pointed out.

"Roy texted me," Inigo added. He pulled up his phone screen, showing the exchange between the two friends. "He said he's on his way."

"Oh." The orange-haired inkling returned her attention to the idol. "Start singing, then."

"Alright. Now, this one's my most popular solo—Tide Goes Out."

Marie began singing, and Perry relaxed in his seat. Everything was going smoothly. Now, the only question was if Roy will like it.

* * *

**A/N: Happy in-universe birthday to Roy! You'll see the conclusion of this birthday party next chapter, which will showcase Roy's reaction to everything. Again, the next chapter will be released next Monday instead of next Sunday. Branchwing, out!**


	15. Singing Birthday Presents

_Roy's PoV_

Roy pulled up to the curb and stepped out of his car. He looked up at the stadium he arrived at. Goby Arena? Why would they be here? He supposed the only way to find out was to go in. As he got deeper inside, the stadium got darker, and he noticed some cutouts of basking sharks and balls on the walls. _A party!_ Finally! People barely acknowledged it all day, but he knew his friends wouldn't let him down.

He noticed something else, though. Or rather, heard. A feminine voice was singing deep inside the arena, probably at the centermost court, if he had to guess. The song she was singing sounded very familiar. _No… could it be?_

Rainbow spots danced across the empty seats, and there were red, black, and white balloons all over the place—his favorite colors. However, it wasn't these that garnered the most of his attention. That award belonged to the jumbotron, where a fair-skinned inkling wearing a black-and-green dress danced. He knew this inkling—he had seen her on the giant screen back in Inkopolis Plaza many, many times.

"Marie?! Of the Squid Sisters?!" he exclaimed, shocked at her appearance at the arena. His red eyes searched the crowd, just to find the Rainbow Squids seated in the frontmost row on this side of the stadium. Near them were two tables, one of them having a cake with white frosting on the top of it. His friends had turned around to look at him upon his exclamation. Perry was smiling as he patted the empty seat next to him. Roy joined his friends and watched as Marie finished his song.

Once she was done singing, all of his friends exclaimed, "Happy birthday Roy!"

"Yes, happy birthday, Roy!" Marie added after they were done.

The entire time, the red-haired inkling had a huge smile plastered on his face. "Thank you!" he exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement. "Thank you, thank you!" He gave a playful punch to the shoulder of each of the boys and shook the hands of the girls excitedly. "I love it!"

"Glad you do," Perry said after Roy gave his thanks. "It cost a fortune to get both the stadium and Marie, and that's coming out of my mouth."

"I don't care! This is even better than I expected!" the tan-skinned inkling beamed. A few tears formed at the corners of his eyes thanks to the overwhelming happiness consuming him. "When you all told me to come to the stadium, I knew something was up, but not something on this scale."

"You did say you wanted a party," Bon-Bon mused.

"So, we gave you the best party for our favorite baskfishball player," Yuri continued.

"But, really, thank you!" Roy concluded.

"No prob," the pale-skinned boy said, giving a thumbs-up. "Now, let's eat."

"Cake?" the red-eyed inkling guessed.

Perry nodded. "Cake."

"I'll eat some cake, too," Marie added.

Roy smiled. _I still can't believe this is happening…_ Everyone gathered around the tables the cake rested on and sang happy birthday to him. After he blew out the colorful candles, Inigo unsheathed the knife next to it and started to cut it. He distributed the cake—with Roy getting the very first piece—and everyone started to eat.

"Aw, you squids know me too well," the tanned inkling commented as he ate his red velvet cake. "Which bakery did you go to?"

"The one down the street," Alexis chimed in. "They have a lot of cakes there."

"Okay." Everyone continued to eat their cakes, having rather pleasant chatter. Marie, however, looked rather worried as she ate, not saying a single word.

"Is something wrong?" Bonnie asked after a while, looking over at the idol.

"…I'm just thinking about Callie," she admitted. "We have the best squids looking for her, but I still can't help but be worried."

"I hope she comes back soon," Inigo added. "It's been, what, a month now?"

"The Great Zapfish's still gone, too," Octavia continued. "But it has to come back soon, right? It only took, what, a month? The first time around for it to come back."

Marie, still frowning, remained silent and continued to eat her cake. Once everyone finished eating, everyone got up from their seats, though they just awkwardly stood there, awaiting a decision.

"…Did you bring me presents?" Roy asked.

Perry's face fell, and then he cried, "We forgot the presents!"

Via cursed and added, "I knew I was forgetting something!"

"Oh well," Marie said, shrugging. "I still have a concert here, you know. I can just… sing."

"You aren't just gonna sing _Tide Goes Out_?" the red-haired inkling muttered.

"Well, yeah. I have other singles, too," the grey-haired inkling pointed out.

"Then so be it," Inigo mused. "We can still have a good time either way, right? Just us, sitting in the stands, watching the concert."

"Especially when that singer's Marie of the Squid Sisters," Bon-Bon added.

"What are we waiting for, then?" Roy asked. "Let's get right back to it!"

Everyone returned to where they were sitting, while Marie returned to the stage. She continued to sing her songs, and for some songs, the Rainbow Squids even sang along to them. In the end, it was clear to Roy that this was a party he would not forget for a long, long time.

* * *

**A/N: Hello! I apologize for this chapter being on the shorter side, I had a little trouble deciding where to take this. There just wasn't much to say. In the end, though, it's short and sweet. The schedule will go back to normal after this, with chapters resuming posts on Sundays! Branchwing, out!**


	16. The Note

_Octavia's PoV_

One day at school, Via and Bonnie were walking through the halls, chatting about their classes.

"So, today in math, these two jellyfish had a fight," Bonnie started.

"A fight? What do they do, sting each other?" Octavia quipped. _They're gelatinous blobs that don't have proper hands; two of them fighting each other would get them nowhere._

"Well… yes… but they also threw books at each other," the beige-skinned inkling muttered. "…And calculators. And pencils."

"Okay… how did it start?" the orange-haired inkling pressed.

"You see, one of them sat on the other's phone, and it broke," she explained. "He was not happy."

"Yikes…" the other inkling murmured. Suddenly, Bonnie's eyes narrowed as she looked at her friend's backpack. "…What?"

"There's a note sticking out of your backpack pocket," she pointed out. She took a white piece of paper out of the backpack and gave it to Octavia. Looking at it, it notably had bad handwriting, and several words were spelled wrong.

"'Meet the Octobrush Master this night at 6:00 PM. Come by yourself, and do not forget your Octobrush!'" she read out loud. Looking at the address, she then added, "It's near Perry's mansion. Whoever this 'Octobrush Master' is must have quite a bit of money."

"Should you really go, though?" Bonnie questioned. "It basically says to come alone, and who's to say they won't randomly splat you?"

"Hmm… I don't know…" she admitted. "I could learn something new."

"I still don't like that idea," the girl with the double bun grumbled.

"I'll ask the others at lunch, let's see what they think," Via decided.

Later, at lunch, when Octavia explained the earlier events, Roy shook his head and declared, "Absolutely not."

"Why not?" the bronze-skinned inkling asked.

"Well, we don't know who put that note in your backpack. It could be anyone!" he argued.

"At the very least, it's an inkling," Inigo pointed out. "We're the only ones that can use these kinds of weapons."

"But can we trust them? I think not!" the red-haired inkling argued, pointing his finger towards the ceiling while boasting a cocky grin.

"On the other hand…" The fair-skinned boy grabbed his arm and pulled it down, causing Roy to lose his grin. "Via could at least see what's up with this 'Octobrush Master'."

"Yeah, they can't be all too bad," Yuri agreed.

"There's still a risk!" Roy snapped. "She could get splatted, and we'd never see her again!"

"I seem like the only one to agree with Roy…" Bonnie muttered. She looked over at Perry, who was silently eating a sandwich as he listened to the conversation. "What about you? You've been quiet the entire time!"

"Personally, I'd say 'splat it' and just go, Via," the purple-haired inkling advised. "Well, ya could go with your instinct, too, but that's boring."

"Instinct, huh?" In her eyes, it actually wasn't such a bad idea to rely on her instinct. She felt a yearning inside of her to go investigate; perhaps it was this. Regardless, with the attitudes of most of the other Rainbow Squids, she decided that she would go meet the Octobrush Master. "Then… I will go. Because of my instinct, and the fact that most of you want me to go either way."

"Ya see, that's the spirit," Perry approved, taking another bite out of his sandwich.

"Well, don't say I didn't warn ya if you die tonight," the tan-skinned inkling growled.

Octavia also relayed the situation to Alexis once they got home from school. "You're seriously gonna do this?!" her younger sister protested. "This is a bad idea!"

"Well, I've already made up my mind," she snapped, and then she left the house to go grab her Octobrush Nouveau from the Deca Tower. When she came back, brush in hand, her mother simply stared at her, bewildered once she opened the door.

"I haven't seen your weapon in months!" she exclaimed. "What happened?"

"Nothing happened, mom," Via said. "I'm just taking it to… a friend's house, today." She didn't want to freak out her parents too much. She bet that they would forbid her from leaving if they found out she was going to a random classmate's house.

"What time?" her mother then asked.

"6:00. Tonight. I shouldn't be there for too long," she replied.

"Well, go have fun tonight," the older inkling said, smiling.

"Don't worry, I will."

A half hour before six, Octavia said goodbye to her family, hopped in the family car, and started driving down the streets of Inkopolis. Though she had the GPS on her phone on, she still looked down at the note every now and then, anticipated what she could come across at this Octobrush Master's house. The house she arrived at was not in good shape compared to the other houses on the same street, notably a lawn overgrown with grass and weeds. She rang the doorbell, and she heard the door unlock before some footsteps scampering further into the house. She opened the door, and was met with a cobweb, right in her face. She let out a cry as she flailed her arms around, trying to destroy it. Once it was gone, she saw some of its remains on her hand and shook it off.

The paint on the walls was chipped, and the floor creaked with every footstep she took. Images hanging on the wall were dusty, so dusty that she could not make out the contents of each individual picture. The only way she knew where she was going was by the starch white papers hanging up against the walls, directed her where to go. She ascended into the dark basement, which smelled of mold.

"Hello? Octobrush Master?" Via called. "You seriously need an inspector to come around."

"What do you mean?" said a new, feminine voice. The light turned on, revealing a funny-looking inkling. "This house would be of the finest variety."

"Maya Ocellus?" The inkling with light brown skin was a new student this year, coming from a foreign place. She had thick black hair that was shoulder-length, and it was tipped in purple. Like Inigo, she didn't wear anything on her head, but she wore a mint tee and Suede Marine lace-ups. Her most notable feature was a kelp bracelet she wore on her wrist; no one knows where she got it. She had dull blue eyes as well.

"That is my name," she confirmed. "Or, the Octobrush Master, if you will."

"Maya, we don't have to be formal," the bronze-skinned inkling pointed out.

"My apologies," the funny-looking inkling said. She still had a heavy accent to her voice. "I am trying to being one of the fresh."

Octavia scratched her head. "…I guess it's the effort that counts. Anyways, can we go into this session or whatever now?"

"Yes." Maya picked up an Octobrush herself, though the design was notably different. The main body of the brush was black, edged in red. The bristles appeared to be the same color of an ordinary Octobrush, though, though it was tipped in her ink color, purple, instead of orange like Via's. "Ink the floor."

"Okay…" She did a few swipes of her brush on the ground, leaving an orange streak. "What next?"

"Go in the ink." Slipping into her squid form, Via jumped into the ink. No more commands came from the black-haired inkling, and she saw her disappear into the darkness. _What is she doing_? the orange squid thought, confused by her actions. Suddenly, she heard a brush rolling along the ground, getting louder with each passing second. Before it could run her over, she emerged and started swinging her Octobrush Nouveau. A few swings later, she saw Maya covered in orange ink.

"My ink is not the color purple," she clarified. "It is now the orange, to the likeness of you." She wiped off the ink on one of her tentacles, revealing orange ends.

"So that's why you disappeared!" the bronze-skinned inkling exclaimed. "You changed your ink color!"

"No," Maya rebutted bluntly. "I wished for you to practice the ambush."

"…And that, too." Putting the bristles of the Octobrush Nouveau down to the ground, she asked, "What's my next lesson, oh mighty Octobrush Master?"

"You need to do the practice more," she informed. "You need to be able to perfect the ambush."

"Then, wipe that ink off of you, and we'll get right to it." Via hopped into the ink again, and Maya disappeared once more. A few moments later, she came back around, and she reemerged from the ink and attacked her again. They repeated this a few more times until the funny-looking inkling told her to stop.

"You are doing well," she commented. "Now, for the next item." Maya disappeared into the darkness and came back out with a few boxes. "Climb to the top of this and attack me from above. Try your best."

"…I already attack people from above a lot, why would I need to practice this?" the wavy-haired inkling asked, her question edged with sass.

"Just do the it," she demanded. The other inkling sighed and climbed on top of the boxes. With that, Maya dashed back into the darkness with her brush, and a few moments later, she charged towards the boxes. With impressive speed, Octavia swung her brush at the inkling with light brown skin, causing her to tumble to the floor.

"See? I'm good, aren't I?" the orange-haired inkling teased.

"You are the good, _and_ the fresh," Maya mused, awe sparkling in her blue eyes. She got up to her feet, and offered, "Do you want to know the history of the Octobrush?"

"Well, I've never thought about it, but sure, I guess."

She let out a sigh and started her tale. "As you can the guess from its name, the Octobrush was a weapon originally developed by the Octarians."

"If it was developed by the Octarians, why do we have it?"

"The inklings stole it during the Great Turf War."

"That makes sense. I mean, we are enemies, after all."

A nervous smile crept up Maya's face, and she muttered, "…Right…"

"The concept and general mechanics of the Octobrush are still the same from the hundred years past, though is more modern when compared to the past." She paused, looking down at her feet before murmuring, "…No." Her attention returned to Octavia. "That is all."

"Fresh," the wavy-haired inkling simply commented. "So, ya got anything else for me?"

With a confident smile, Maya boldly asked, "We should fight in the turf war. You will be able to test your skills there."

"The Deca Tower is kinda far from here, though!" she cried.

"We can do the walk," the other girl argued.

"Oh, fine…" The two inklings ran out of the house, where Octavia then directed Maya to her car. "We're taking this, then."

They drove back to downtown Inkopolis, where they eventually arrived at the square. They hopped out of the car, weapons in hand, and ran into the tower. Via pointed to one of the free elevators, in which there was already a few inklings inside. The two stepped in it, and she took the chance to look at the other inklings with her.

Counting Via and Maya, there were currently five inklings. The first inkling, a boy with a buzzcut and pale skin was wearing 18K Aviators on his head, obscuring his eyes. Alongside that, he wore a half-sleeve sweater and cream hi-tops. In his hands was the standard Blaster. The second inkling was an olive-skinned girl wearing a camping hat, alongside short hair and green eyes. She also had on a black anchor tee and black flip-flops. Her weapon of choice appeared to be the Tri-Slosher. The third and final inkling wore studio headphones like Yuri, though he had a ponytail. Wearing a Birded Corduroy jacket and punk blacks as well, he held a Splattershot Pro in his hands.

Soon, the rest of the elevator was filled, with three inklings, one with a Splat Roller, one with a Splash-o-matic, and one with a N-ZAP '89, walking in. The elevator started to descend, with everyone standing in awkward silence. Soon, the floor opened up below them, revealing the familiar grate, and they all slipped through it. Soon, Octavia reformed from the spawn pad on Moray Towers. Within an instant, globs of light blue ink began shooting down at the ground. _Blue, huh? I can work with that_.

Putting the bristles on the ground, the wavy-haired inkling began running towards the center of the map. The sooner they can control it, the better. Some time later, she jumped down to the bottommost platform and began swinging her Octobrush Nouveau. However, she suddenly had a wad of pink ink in her face. She let out a cry and stumbled backwards, wiping the ink out of her eyes. Squinting, her orange eyes focused on the girl with Tri-Slosher. Splashes of pink ink were present where she was once standing. A cocky smile was plastered on her face.

"How 'bout that!" she boasted. She stuck out a tongue and jumped down, Tri-Slosher in hand.

"Oh, no you don't!" Swinging around the girl with the Tri-Slosher, she started to swing her brush in order to splat her. The other inkling managed to hit her with her weapon once before exploding into a puddle of blue ink. "Booyah!" Via cheered.

"Good job," commented someone behind her. Looking over her shoulder, she saw the boy with the Splat Roller, holding it in its inactive position.

"Thanks," she thanked. "But we have to keep pushing."

"Right." He slammed down the roller and started to push it forward towards the slopes. Octavia slipped into the ink and slowly inched up them. If she could maintain stealth, then perhaps she could actually ambush someone.

Her chance came when she saw the boy with the blaster walk down towards the middle area, shooting a ring of ink every now and then. The wavy-haired inkling inched closer to him and emerged from the ink at last, catching him off guard as she swung her brush back in forth. However, it wasn't in vein, as he managed to shoot her right in the abdomen, splatting her.

Once she respawned, she wrapped an arm around her stomach, wincing from the leftover pain from the explosion. "Ow…" she moaned. She slipped into her squid form and jumped down to the next tower, where she placed a Squid Beakon on the box in the middle. From there, she jumped down to the next tower, where she was able to survey the middle area. She spotted Maya running around, inking the area with pink ink. Smirking, she swiped her brush a little bit, leaving a little pool of blue ink. When she wasn't looking, Octavia jumped into that pool and waited for the funny-looking inkling to notice it.

Indeed, she did, as she saw her dive into the ink, leaving behind ripples where she travelled. When she reemerged to cover the spot back up, Via reemerged as well, and started hitting her with the Octobrush Nouveau, and of course, Maya retaliated. They ended up splatting at the same time. When Octavia respawned, she decided to super-jump to the boy with the Splat Roller. She turned into her squid form, and soon, a stream of blue ink sprawled out from behind her, and she landed next to the boy with the roller.

The boy with the roller, whose hair was styled into a side cut, with a small ponytail in the back, gasped upon seeing her. "You! Octobrush girl! You came at just the right time!" He jumped up into the air, doing a vertical swing and sending a stream of ink out in front of him. "You gotta help me get up further."

"Will do." Winking and dipping her hat, she stepped in front of him and started swinging her brush back and forth, eventually inking a wide path. The two inklings made their way up the ramp when a third inkling super-jumped to them.

"Need help?" offered the girl with the N-ZAP '89. She pulled out an Autobomb and threw it in front of her. After a second, it started to waddle up the slope. Octavia put the bristles of the brush down and started walking up the ramp, following the Autobomb. A girl with the Splash-o-matic soon emerged from the ink and started shooting at her. Gasping, she started to run faster, going past the enemy. Before Via could land a hit on her, however, the Autobomb exploded, splatting her. "That should do it," concluded the girl with the N-ZAP. With that, the three inklings advanced forward.

However, they were stopped quickly when Maya appeared again. Smirking, she dove into the ink, vanishing from sight.

"…Where did that weird-looking girl go?" the inkling with the Splat Roller murmured.

"She's probably trying to ambush us," the wavy-haired inkling assumed. "We have to be careful."

"Then…" He did another vertical swing, and a cry could be heard as an explosion of blue ink appeared. "There. She's gone."

"I'm impressed," commented the girl with the N-ZAP. She had pigtails.

"Regardless, let's move on," Via commanded. The three inklings climbed up the ramps some more, until they got to the topmost tower, where the spawn was located. When Maya saw the three, her lip curled, and she launched into the ink.

"You must be the fools," her voice jeered. "You came all the way here, yet you ignore the other side." She emerged briefly to throw an Autobomb at them before hiding again.

"The other side?" The three inklings looked over at the other side of the back, only to be horrorstruck to see it mostly covered in pink. The bomb exploded, taking out all three inklings.

When they respawned, the other member of their team, the boy with the Splattershot Pro, was struggling to keep control of their area. He looked up at the three newcomers, clearly upset.

"Where were you squids?!" he snapped. "You left me alone!"

"The enemy side," Octavia replied.

"Don't worry, we'll help you now," the girl with the pigtails declared. All three inklings jumped down to the main platform and started walking the towards the first ramp, where the girl with the Tri-Slosher and the boy with the Blaster were located. The boy with the Splat Roller did a vertical swing, taking out the girl. The boy was just barely able to dodge, but the inkling with the Splattershot Pro swooped in to take the kill.

"That's a start," he muttered. "We have to keep going; we only have a minute left." All four inklings started running down the ramps at their own speeds, covering them back up with blue ink. Via, being the fastest, was the first to encounter the next enemy—the girl with the Splash-o-matic. She threw a bottle at her, covering the wavy-haired inkling with a pink haze. She quickly turned around and shot back up the ramp she came from.

"Help, please?!" Octavia cried, looking back at the other three inklings. The girl with the N-ZAP '89 came to join her and threw an Autobomb at the toxic mist.

"That should do it," she said. She was proven wrong when she noticed the inkling with the Splash-o-matic jump down to the tower below. "…Or not."

"Well, I guess it's time for the Tenta Missiles," Via declared. Pulling out a pair of launchers, she locked the missiles onto two inklings on the top of the enemy tower and hit the trigger. Several missiles shot out of the launchers, and soon, light blue streams crashed down towards the top of the enemy tower, exploding on contact. "Ha! Let's see who wins now!"

The other two members of their team came to join them, and they continued to progress down the towers. However, as she ran through the pink ink, brush down, Maya popped out of the ink and started to swing her brush. Octavia scrambled away from her, but not before the funny-looking inkling could get a hit on her. Once she was far away enough, she pointed her Octobrush Nouveau at Maya, breathing heavily as pink enemy ink dripped off her.

"This… the real test," she said. "It is just us, in the midst of the battle. If you can get the win, then you have passed, Octavia."

"Let's keep it fair, though." The wavy-haired inkling submerged herself into the ink to recover before she attacked. "We must be at our best, first."

"Now, start!" The two inklings charged at each other, each getting a hit on each other before they faced each other with their backs. "You are not bad," Maya complimented, "but will you get the win?"

"Yeah." Via charged towards her, aiming for her back. Her blue eyes widened as a streak of blue ink marked her back, but she swung around and hit the bronze-skinned inkling hard, knocking her to the ground. She quickly got up and gave one final swing to Maya, splatting her. With that, the whistle blew, ending the match.

Judd and Li'l Judd were quick to arrive, and they did their little dance before the latter struck out a pink flag, declaring the enemy the winner. The boy with the Splattershot Pro, who was watching Maya's and Octavia's duel, let out a cry of frustration and threw his weapon to the ground. Soon, everyone super-jumped back to the lobby, where the specific stats of the battle were displayed.

As the screen displayed the map, Maya walked up to the wavy-haired inkling and put a hand on her shoulder. "That was the freshest of the duels, do you agree?"

"…I suppose it was a fresh duel," Via reluctantly agreed, scratching the back of her head. "Our team may have lost, but I still won the duel."

"It is the reverse for me. My team got a win, but I did not. Regardless, I still had the fun," the light brown-skinned inkling added.

"And fun is what counts!" Octavia exclaimed.

Giving a distant look, Maya smiled. "You are in the right; it is the fun that the counts."

* * *

**A/N: It's the next chapter, and we're back on Sundays! Hope you liked it. Don't really have much to say other than that. Branchwing, out!**


	17. Hidden Tracks

_Yuri's PoV_

In the midst of a Salmon Run, the dark-skinned inkling found himself running away from a Steel Eel, clanking its jaws as it lumbered on towards him. In his hands he clenched some Splat Dualies, one of his least favorite weapons. Considering he was running straight towards the water, his chances of surviving looked slim. As he covered his face, preparing to be splatted, the Steel Eel suddenly came crashing down, leaving behind some golden eggs in the end. When the rubble cleared, he saw his savior—an inkling with the ends of her hair chopped off. Yuri recognized her as Lori from Perry's photos, despite her not introducing herself.

"Grab these eggs and let's finish this round," the grey-eyed inkling commanded. The dark-skinned inkling nodded and swiped one of the eggs left behind and started running back towards the egg basket. When they returned, however, more salmonids began to close in on them. Backs up against each other, they gave each other a worried glance.

"Where are the others?" Yuri asked.

"I don't know, but they have to be somewhere," Lori replied. At that moment, two inklings started to cry for help. "…Or not. We're going to lose this round."

"Not with that attitude!" Yuri started to shoot the Chums lumbering towards them. "C'mon, you have the Sploosh-o-matic! I heard it's a pretty good weapon."

"Not in my hands," the grey-eyed inkling grumbled.

"Don't ya just hold down the trigger and boom, enemy splatted?"

"I'm used to weapons that take time to charge up," she explained. Pressing down the trigger, a few salmonids coming her way were splatted. "I'm not used to being on the front lines."

"Honestly? Same," the yellow-eyed inkling agreed. "But… it's what we got. We just have to push forward."

Lori simply nodded, and the two took a few steps forwards, trying their best to clear a path through the salmonids and reach the inklings on the beach. They had to fall back sometimes, as the salmonids became rather overwhelming at some points. However, by the time they got to the beach, time ran out, and the salmonids started heading back towards the water. Lori cursed and threw her Sploosh-o-matic to the ground.

All four inklings super-jumped back to the boat, where the two splatted ones recovered. However, one boy, an inkling with spiky hair like himself, was holding something peculiar.

"Anyone want this?" he asked, holding the record up. "I found this on the beach and grabbed it before I splatted."

"Oh, me!" Yuri exclaimed, jumping up-and-down. "I'll be glad to take it."

"Then it's yours." The inkling tossed the disc to the yellow-eyed inkling, who then inspected it. The sticker on it depicted a group of salmonids with instruments. It was in greyscale, too.

"Thanks," he said. "I'm gonna go listen to this now!"

"Can I join you?" Lori asked. "I'm kinda curious."

"Sure, but first, let's get off this boat."

After the boat returned to Inkopolis, the two inklings stepped off the boat and changed back to their normal ink colors. Though Yuri's ink was obviously yellow, Lori's was teal. Record still in hand, the two walked out of Grizzco's and started walking down the street, towards Yuri's house.

"It sucks we have to walk to your house," the teal-haired girl commented, adjusting her cycling hat. "A car would be much better."

"I dunno, the scenic route is nice," the yellow-haired inkling pointed out. Lori simply shrugged, and they continued on their way.

Yuri's house was a townhouse closest to the school the Rainbow Squids attended, which was convenient for him, as he could just walk to school. As far as townhouses go, however, his was on the bigger side, accommodating for himself, his mom, and his siblings. The two inklings were immediately granted with the sight of one them when they opened the door.

"Is that your girlfriend?" asked Yasmin, Yuri's younger sister of roughly twelve years of age.

"No, sorry," the spiky-haired inkling replied. "She's just gonna listen to this record we found with me."

"Oh, okay," she simply said. The young inkling stepped out of the way to let the two older ones through. "I'll tell Mom you're here."

"Great." Winking, he gave a thumbs up, and the two then rushed up the stairs. Once they arrived at the next floor, where everyone's rooms were located, they walked over to the room with a Squid Sisters poster plastered on its door. Yuri informed Lori that it was his room, and he opened the door for her before walking in himself. He closed the door and opened his closet, pulling out a record player.

"Out of all things, why do you have a _record player_?" the teal-haired inkling asked, who was cleaning the dirt off it.

"Well, my dad owned a lot of records," he explained. "…When he passed away, my mom allowed me to keep the records instead of throwing them away." Despite happening many years ago, he still hated discussing the details surrounding his father's death. It hasn't bothered him as much as it did in the past, but it was still a touchy subject for him.

Lori simply dipped her head in respect and solemnly responded, "I see."

"In the end, though…" Once the girl was done cleaning it, she gave it to him, and he put the unknown record into the player. "Let's take a listen to this." Closing it, the record began to play. The two inklings pulled up beanbags and sat back in them, listening to it. The first track was rather soft, with a lot of timpani and electronic beats, but a cello started playing in the background after a while, getting louder overtime. It eventually faded out.

"You know, for something with salmonids on the cover, this isn't that bad," the inkling with grey eyes commented, putting her arms behind her head.

"You think the salmonids made this?" Yuri asked.

"Probably."

"Would records even work underwater?"

"I'm sure they found a way." She smirked as a louder piece started to play. "Time for the next one." In this piece, the cello and timpani were heavier and much more prominent, but it still had the same general tune to it. "What the heck! It's basically the same thing!" she cried out in the middle of song.

"Wait until the end, it could have a surprise change to it," the spiky-haired inkling tried to assure. Alas, he was wrong, as there was still no major difference.

Lori let out a long sigh. "If the next one is relatively the same, I'm leaving." The next song started playing, which started with electronic sounds getting higher and higher before resetting a few seconds later. This repeated a few times until the cello and timpani became more prominent. Hearing it glitch from time to time unsettled Yuri; it was like he was out in the battlefield, but his life was on the line. The teal-haired inkling seemed to have felt the same way, as he noticed an uneasy expression on her face.

"This is creepy, for eel," he muttered.

"I know." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "And it's tense…"

When the song finished, the two collectively let out a sigh of relief. The next song that played wasn't any better, however. The first few measures of the next song started with a frantic cello, which continued to be prominent through the piece. The timpani continued to bang in the background as usual, though it seemed to be louder when the electronic jingles played from time to time. Towards the middle, the piece seemed to get more solemn, as the cello became quieter. However, it quickly reverted to the previous tune after a while, and back to the solemn theme in the end. The song faded out, and the record stopped spinning.

"Only four songs? That's lame," Lori jeered.

"Even if it's only four songs, they were still pretty good," Yuri remarked. _And creepy,_ he wanted to add.

"Anyways, I guess I'll go." The grey-eyed inkling got up from her beanbag and started walking towards the door.

"Wait! I never asked you for your name!" In a sense, it was true, since he actually never asked for her name. On the other hand, he already knew her name, but he figured it would be weird if he said it out loud before asking.

"Lori, what about you?"

"Yuri's my name. …I guess I'll see you later."

"Maybe I will, maybe I won't." The teal-haired inkling winked and left the room for good, leaving Yuri alone. Once she was gone, he took out the record and got up from his seat, too. Walking over to his record collection, he looked for a spare sleeve to put it in. Finding a green one, he slid it in there and set it next to a Chirpy Chips record.

_It's safe there; I don't think anyone else wants it anyways._

* * *

**A/N: In case you were wondering, Lori and Yuri were listening to w-3's music. It's pretty obvious, considering they did find the record during a Salmon Run. Regardless, I hoped you liked this rather short chapter! I didn't really have any other ideas, so... here you go. Next chapter is a Hero Mode chapter, like you'd expect. Branchwing, out!**


	18. Bounce House

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**Some of Marie's and Sheldon's dialogue is taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

Breaking the barrier, the short-haired inkling leaped for the zapfish and rolled onto her back, holding the zapfish up into the air. All the while, she had a huge smile on her face.

"I got it!" Alexis cheered.

"Great," Marie applauded over her headset. "You're getting good at this."

"Coming up!" Turning into her squid form, zapfish still in hand, she super-jumped out of the underground lair, and a few seconds later, she emerged from the kettle. Hopping onto the ride rail nearby, she rode it down to the main area, where the grey-haired inkling was waiting. Closing her umbrella and resting the tip of it on the ground, she took the zapfish from Agent 4. "Where to now?" the younger inkling then asked.

"Sheldon's little machine sensed a signal over there," she instructed, pointing towards a building with her umbrella. "You'll need to hop on the propeller lift to reach it, though."

"The one right there?" Alexis asked, pointing to the lift next to it.

"Yeah, that's the one."

"Alright!" Inking a path, she walked over to the propeller lift and climbed on it.

"Stop at the next platform!" Marie called once she got on it.

"Okay!" With the Hero Dualies, the bronze-skinned inkling started shooting the propeller, sending it to a platform with a bunch of boxes on it. She climbed up a wooden plank to reach the very top of it, where she then looked around. "…I don't see it." Past an arch, however, she saw another platform with something strange shining in the light. The next kettle. "Never mind!" She inked the platform and made the leap to it. She heaved herself onto the platform, where she suddenly found herself being pounded with enemy ink. Whipping around, she saw a sprinkler on the arch. She quickly shot it, and it broke down, metal scraps falling off the red arch.

"Umm… Agent 4?" Sheldon interjected as she revealed the kettle on the platform.

"Yeah?" Alexis asked.

"…That's not the one I found," he replied. "The next one's on top of a building."

"Yeah, I know that, and… oh." Taking off her headset, she put an ear to the kettle she just revealed and heard the faint voices of a few octolings. She shivered. The first time she encountered octolings was last week, and it did not go over well. She was splatted several times trying to fight them, and once she finally saved all eight mini zapfish, she was relieved. However, this also made Alexis have the horrifying realization that Off the Hook's very own Marina was an octoling. She's avoided watching the news since. She put her headset back on and announced, "I'm not going there."

"Good call," the idol approved. "I don't think you want to crash their party just yet."

Turning around, she saw a few crates on the edge of the platform she came from. She jumped back to them and broke the crates, with one revealing a ride rail. She hopped on it and soon jumped to one that suddenly appeared beside it. She hid in the rail, passing through the grate and landing on top of the building Marie pointed out earlier.

"That's it!" Sheldon exclaimed. "That's the signal I found!"

"Great." She inked the top of the building, and soon, a kettle appeared in the middle of it. _Time to go in._ Smiling, she slipped inside and spawned in an area that reminded her of a boardwalk. Directly in front of her was the bulb that activated a rail.

Instantly, a Hero Shot spawned in her hands. "I could _really_ use some more data on this weapon. Can you use it for a bit?" the horseshoe crab requested.

"Sure thing." Agent 4 activated the ride rail and rode it down to a main, sandy area. It was covered in bounce pads. _A bounce house?! That's so cool… _When she jumped off the rail and landed on a bounce pad, she started to hop on it idly.

"Trying to walk on a bounce pad won't do much," Marie pointed out. "Jumping, on the other hand, will get you some serious air!" Nodding, Alexis tried jumping on the pad, and it launched her into the air. She jumped onto a platform that could not be normally reached, thanks to the bounce pads. She broke the crates, and a few orange orbs started flying towards her. An Octotrooper in the sand noticed her and shot out a blob of magenta ink, aimed towards her. Peering through the grate hanging off of the platform, she pulled the trigger on the Hero Shot, sending out a few bullets of ink. The Octotrooper very quickly exploded into teal ink. She walked over to the bounce pads behind the puddle of ink and started jumping on them.

"Use the bounce pad to bounce up there and barbecue those baddies!" the idol advised as soon as the short-haired inkling hopped on the pads. A shielded Octotrooper noticed her and started shooting out ink blobs. She gasped and hid behind a small wall. It soon went back to what it was previously doing, giving Alexis the chance to shoot it from behind. Quickly did it splat.

"Yes!" Alexis exclaimed, pumping a fist. She jumped into the teal pool it left behind and walked up to bounce pads leading up to even higher ground. From what she could see, two shielded Octotroopers were patrolling the area. She hid behind the wall until the back of one of them was exposed, and she shot it down. The other Octotrooper, alarmed, swung around and shot another magenta bullet at her. Being in the air, she did not have much time to dodge out of the way, and as a result, some of ink got on the hoodie she was wearing. The Octarian ink stinging, she dove into the pool the ink explosion left behind in order to heal. The enemy was smarter than she realized, however, and it shot an ink blob directly at her chest, shattering the Hero Suit.

"You need to retreat!" Marie demanded. "The Hero Suit will repair itself if you lay low."

Wearing only her undergarments, the headphones, a few bracelets, and damaged boots, Agent 4 jumped down to the bounce pad below and shot a puddle of ink next to it, where she hid. When the pain faded, she reemerged with the Hero Suit on again. Waiting for the back of the shielded Octotrooper to show again, she jumped behind the wall and shot it once she had the chance. It exploded into teal ink, and finally the short-haired inkling could move on. She walked over to the launchpad and launched into the air, landing on another wooden platform.

"I must find one of these bounce pads for some… research," Sheldon commented as Alexis approached a platform covered in pads.

The inkling over the headset sighed and informed, "Those moving walls can send you bouncing to your doom if you're not careful."

"Yikes," she muttered as she jumped onto the bounce pads. A moving wall was approaching her, with some of the orange orbs sticking to it. Sitting on top of it was a suitcase of armor. She leaped into the air, the wall passing by her as she plummeted back towards the pad. She continued jumping, watching as the wall stopped and changed directions. _Should I get the armor?_ she asked herself. She was pulled out of her thoughts as ink hit her side. She looked up to see an Octotrooper shooting at her. She gasped and jumped up to the next platform, shooting at it. Soon, it splatted, and only a key was on the wall. She climbed onto the wall and grabbed the key before walking over to the wooden platform where a vault was located. She unlocked it and proceeded to use the launchpad it revealed.

"Well played!" Marie complimented. The next area Agent 4 arrived seemed to be some sort of conveyor belt, with large boxes circling around some bounce pads in an orderly fashion. It was surrounded by water. "Remember to bounce high!" she reminded as the short-haired inkling stepped onto the line of pads. She jumped onto one of the boxes and inked the top of it. Looking behind her, she saw the box approaching water faster and faster. She inked the box in front of her and jumped on it. She continued this until she arrived at the next platform, a sandy walkway with a flooder patrolling it. She quickly inked a path past it and dashed towards the bounce pad up ahead.

It seemed that even Octarians enjoyed the bounce pads, as they were hopping around on some the bronze-skinned inkling was approaching. She quickly shot the Octotroopers down and arrived at another conveyor belt. This time, the boxes were much narrower, though they were large enough to cover the gap between this walkway and the next. She had the bounce pads to save her in case she fell, but Alexis wanted to cross the gap in one go. Walking up to the edge of the platform, she threw out a curling bomb and dived into the ink, swimming across the platform. She reemerged to take out an Octotrooper blocking her path, quickly inked the wall, and climbed up it before the flooder could cover her in magenta ink.

"Awright," Marie cheered as Alexis passed the checkpoint and used the launchpad to super-jump to her next location. The launchpad sent her directly onto a bounce pad surrounded by four wooden poles. She looked down and gulped upon seeing the drop. Passing through some squid rings, the short-haired inkling jumped down to the next bounce pad, and then the next, and then the next. When she arrived at the bottom of the tower, another launchpad awaited her.

_That was anti-climactic,_ Alexis thought, but regardless, she super-jumped to the next set of platforms. When she landed, more bounce pads and moving walls awaited her. Once the wall was at the left edge of the pads, she jumped down to them and splatted the Octotrooper stationed on a platform attached to it. Agent 4 jumped onto the platform where it was and hid in the ink. She emerged to splat another one and jumped to the next platform, which featured ascending bounce pads.

"Well done!" the idol complimented. When the short-haired inkling finished climbing the tower, she was met with another moving wall with Octotroopers stationed on top of it. Interestingly, at the end of bounce pad walkway, there was a large Octarian with goggles and a long, thin weapon. A thin green light signaled its line of sight.

"What's that?" Agent 4 asked. The Octotroopers noticed her and started shooting out their blobs of ink, and the mysterious Octarian noticed her and quickly shot out a line of ink, marked by the laser turning red. The magenta ink hit her stomach, and she clenched it pain. She hid behind a bumper next to her. "That thing has a charger or somethin'!"

"That's an Octosniper," Marie explained. "It can easily splat you if you're not careful. So, stay hidden, and things will be a lot easier."

"I see," the bronze-skinned inkling said through clenched teeth. "It packs a punch."

"Rest for a bit," she advised. "Then, move!"

Alexis nodded and inked a puddle out in front of her. Going into her squid form, she slipped into it and waited until she recovered from the shot before emerging again. With newfound determination, she rushed onto the bounce pads, using the walls as cover from the Octosniper. She grabbed the armor and splatted the Octotroopers without much injury. Now, it was only her and the sniper. Hiding behind the wall, she threw a standard splat bomb over it, hoping the explosion would take out the Octarian. Soon, she heard a gargled cry as orange orbs floated towards her.

"Nice!" the grey-haired inkling cheered. The orange-eyed inkling jumped over the wall and arrived at another tower, where more bounce pads awaited her. She climbed that tower once more, and now, she was face-to-face with the zapfish. She broke the barrier and snatched it from the pedestal.

"I got it!" Alexis declared, holding it up in triumph.

"Great! That's two today!"

The bronze-skinned girl brought down the zapfish to eye level and stared into its beady eyes. "Let's go home," she muttered, and then she super-jumped out of the underground lair. Alexis emerged from the kettle with the zapfish in hand, and she jumped down to the mainland where Marie was waiting. "Here you go," she said, giving it to the idol.

"Thanks." She put the zapfish Alexis had just obtained into a box, which contained the other zapfish the short-haired inkling got today. When they saw each other, they started to emit a few sounds, and the second one started to nuzzle the other's cheek. Marie chuckled. "They'll be good friends, that's for sure."

"Mhm," Agent 4 agreed, nodding. "Y'know, I've been meaning to ask you—you know those orange things that just float around in the Octarians' lairs."

"Power eggs?" the grey-haired inkling asked.

"Is that what they're called?"

"Yeah!" Sheldon suddenly piped in. "You already know this, but you can use them to upgrade your weapon at the Ammo Knights Enhancifier back at the Cuttlefish Cabin!"

"Fresh." Alexis then refocused her attention on Marie and asked, "Can we go back to the cabin?"

"Of course." Marie smiled, and the two started walking to the launchpad that would take them to Tentakeel Outpost, where they would retire for the day.

* * *

**A/N: And that brings an end to another chapter! I'm not sure if the next Hero Mode chapter will cover a boss or an area 4 level yet, but... I guess you'll find out when the time comes. Hope you liked this chapter, and Branchwing, out!**


	19. Dancing in Twilight

_Bonnie's PoV_

In Inkopolis Square, it was a party. Of course, this was expected during a Splatfest. The theme this time around was Vampire vs. Werewolf, and Bonnie was on Team Vampire. She even decked out in a pair of false fangs that stuck out of her mouth. They were uncomfortable, but considering that Halloween was approaching, it was festive. It even garnered a few chuckles from her friends.

"Where'd ya buy those?" Perry asked. "Maybe I should buy a pair for myself."

"But you're on Team Werewolf," Octavia pointed out. She was on Team Vampire, too.

"Hey! Werewolves have fangs too!" the purple-eyed inkling snapped.

"Well…" The fake fangs had given the inkling with a double bun somewhat of a lisp. "I bought 'em from a costume store… Flatflage, I think?"

"I've been to a Flatflage store," Roy grumbled. He was on Team Vampire. "The manager of that one was very mean."

"What happened?" Inigo asked. He was on Pearl's team, too.

"Roy and I were going to buy a costume for my little sister," Yuri piped in. He was on Team Werewolf, like Perry. "She wanted a princess costume, so we found a princess costume."

"Before ya continue, Yuri," the pale-skinned inkling chimed in. "Which sister was it for? The twelve-year old or the twin?"

"The twin," he clarified.

"Alright, alright." Perry leaned back in his chair. "Go on with the story."

"Alright, so, the manager, who was just walking around, walked up to us and just…" The tanned inkling did a swiping motion. "Bam! He ripped the costume out of Yuri's hands and told us we're not little girls!"

"I tried telling him it was for my sister, but he wouldn't listen," the dark-skinned inkling added.

"That's horrible!" Bonnie gasped. _I'm glad I never encountered anything like that at Flatflage!_

"Your sister did get a costume in the end, right?" Via asked. "I would hate coming home without one."

"Oh, yeah," the spiky-haired inkling reassured. "We just went to another store."

"I'm still mad about it," Roy growled. "Even though it's been a week since then."

"Well, the past is the past," Yuri said. "We can just forget about it and move on."

"Right…" Inigo muttered, giving a small smile. "Anyways, shall we go to Deca Tower?"

"Before we go…" Octavia heaved an orange bag up on the table and opened it to reveal several skull bandanas. "I bought these for us to wear."

"You only bought six, right?" the red-eyed inkling asked. "Because I'm already wearing one."

"Don't worry, Roy. I made sure of it." The wavy-haired inkling put on one of the bandanas, and then the other inklings at the table took one. Afterwards, Via showed him the inside of the bag. "See? It's empty."

"Good," he grumbled.

Bonnie took off her glasses, and suddenly, everything became blurry. She popped the false fangs out of her mouth and put on the skull bandana. She wished she brought her contacts now, as poor eyesight would not help her much with aiming her Classic Squiffer. To be fair, Via's reveal of the skull bandanas was sudden, so she had no time to prepare.

"It's weird to not have a hat on," Perry commented as he set his king flip mesh down on the table.

"It's weird to have _anything_ on my head," Inigo added.

"Well, you have a ponytail," the inkling with spiked bangs pointed out. "I don't."

"…True," he admitted.

"Anyways, ready to have some spooky matches?" Alexis asked, standing up from her chair. She would be joining Yuri and Perry on Team Werewolf. "I bet this Shifty Station is extra fresh!"

"I think all the Shifty Stations are fresh," commented Bon-Bon. "But I still like the normal stages, too."

"Kelp Dome is especially pretty in the nighttime, don't you think?" Inigo added.

"There's a lot of plants in there, that's for sure," the wavy-haired inkling then grumbled. "When the Squid Sisters still did Splatfests, I got lost in there once. It was a nightmare!"

"You still think about that?" Roy exasperated. "It's been two years since then!"

"Hey, it was a bad day for me!" Octavia protested.

The inkling with the double bun couldn't help but give a small chuckle. During the Cats vs. Dogs Splatfest, everyone was very enthusiastic to explore the new nighttime stages. Unfortunately, when Via decided to explore Kelp Dome by herself, she got lost. By the time everyone noticed, a few inklings went into the dome to search for her. She was later found wandering into the middle of another match, and she was quickly escorted out of it. Nowadays, everyone just laughed about it, but Via was still bitter about the experience.

"Anyways, isn't Kelp Dome a stage you can play on right now?" Bonnie then asked.

"It is," Inigo confirmed. "That's why I mentioned it."

"Man, it makes me want to play a match already," Yuri effused. "Seriously, we really should!"

"Right," the inkling with his hair swept to the side agreed. "Why waste our time talking when we can get out there and kick Werewolf butt?"

"…You do realize three of us are on Team Werewolf, right?" Alexis pointed out.

"…Oh yeah." The tan-skinned inkling scratched his head. "I forgot that."

"Anyways…" Perry got up from his chair and started walking to the Deca Tower, twirling his hat around his finger. "Let's go, shall we!"

"Yeah!" The rest of the Rainbow Squids soon followed him into the tower, where it was crowded, like everyone expected. The inklings slipped their way through the mass of inklings towards the interface where they would open the storage room their weapons were in. Roy opened the room, causing the panel to slide open. They rushed downstairs, grabbed their weapons, and returned to the ground floor, where they would search for the elevator that would lead them to a stage.

"Okay, Via, Bon-Bon, Inigo, and I will go into that elevator," the red-eyed inkling decided, pointing to one of the free ones. "So, Yuri, Perry, and Alexis will go into another one."

"Well, duh," the wavy-haired inkling said. "How else would we do it?"

No one said anything in response, so everyone just shrugged and started walking towards the elevators. The inklings on Team Vampire crowded into one of the elevators, where a group of inklings wearing orange t-shirts with a werewolf on it awaited them. All of them were male with fair skin and green eyes, sporting a hairstyle where their hair was slicked back. They also all wielded the Splattershot and wore canary trainers on their feet. The only way to distinguish them from one another was their hats.

"They all look the same," Bon-Bon whispered to Octavia.

"I know," she responded softly. "Not much we can do about it."

The elevator door closed shut, and it started to descend. Quickly, the grate under them opened, and everyone slipped into their squid form to head to the next match. A few moments, later, Bonnie spawned on top of a circular platform, with a glass dome stretching above them. _Kelp Dome_, she realized. _We were just talking about it; what a coincidence!_

Soon, her teammates launched off the spawn point and started covering the area around them with purple ink. Bonnie started firing her squiffer rapidly, allowing her to ink the surrounding area faster. While Inigo and Via took the left walkway, Roy took the right one. The inkling with the double bun figured she might as well follow him; he might need someone with long range to back him up. She ran after him, inking the surrounding area as much as she could.

"Hey, Bon-Bon," the red-eyed inkling greeted. "You sure you don't wanna follow the others? I can hold my own just fine." He inked a ramp leading to another section of the stage before jumping from it.

Slipping into her squid form momentarily, the beige-skinned girl joined him over the glass containers. "Thought you might need some range," she replied.

"…I guess," Roy agreed. "Just stay behind me, OK?"

"OK." As the two inklings advanced, more and more orange ink quickly came into range. It was clear the other team was trying to control the middle of the stage before the Rainbow Squids could. Suddenly, a boy with a backwards cap emerged from the ink, shooting ink from his Splattershot at them. An inkling with a Firefin facemask soon joined him. _There's two of them!_ Bonnie threw a point sensor at the two inklings, causing a purple arrow to start swirling around them. _Via, Inigo, please come quickly…_

Bon-Bon started charging up her charger, aiming at them. She wasn't sure which one to hit just yet, but she knew she had to decide quickly. Roy fired his Luna Blaster right in the face of the boy with the Firefin facemask, instantly splatting him. Smiling, she aimed her Classic Squiffer at the other boy and fired. He splatted as well.

"Booyah! Two are down!" the inkling with hair swept to the side cheered.

Soon, Inigo ran into view, panting. "What happened?" he asked.

"Two of the squids attacked us," Bon-Bon explained.

"But we took them down!" Roy finished.

"Why'd you throw the point sensor, then?" the indigo-eyed inkling asked.

"Just in case they overwhelmed us," she replied.

"Well, it's glad you took them down," he said. "Tracking doesn't last forever, y'know."

"Yeah, I know," the inkling with the double bun pointed out. "But, the Carbon Roller and the Octobrush are both f-"

Before she could finish her sentence, another inkling with a Splattershot emerged from orange ink and splatted Inigo, catching the others off guard. This one wore studio headphones, much like Yuri. Growling, Roy rushed up to him, but the newcomer was quick, and he launched a burst bomb at him before finishing him off with the shooter weapon. Bonnie gasped, stepping back as she charged up her weapon. Looking around, she noticed that orange ink started to surround her, and another inkling splatted her before she could fire her shot at the inkling with the headphones.

When she respawned, she heard Roy yell, "Darn it!" before diving back into the ink himself. Looking around, things were grim. The purple area was shrinking, being replaced with orange. Bon-Bon fell her jaw drop. _How could a team of just Splattershots cover so much turf in so little time?!_

"Just who are you, anyways?" she heard Via ask. Bonnie swam over to her to check things out. Octavia was standing on the edge of a ramp, looking down upon the inkling wearing the headphones and the inkling wearing the backwards cap.

"We're the Splatteruplets," replied the inkling with the headphones. "Evan, Kevin, Devin, and me—Seven!"

"I guess your parents ran out of ideas," the wavy-haired inkling remarked. "Seriously, who names their kid _Seven_?" she then whispered to Bonnie, who just shrugged in response.

"Hey! Seven's the freshest brother in the world!" the inkling with the backwards cap defended. "He's the best Splattershot main around, and he knows all the latest trends, too!"

"Wouldn't it hurt to at least get different hairstyles?" Bon-Bon queried, hostility edging her voice. In the meantime, she charged up her Classic Squiffer. _Maybe I can catch them off-guard._

"What? No!" the inkling next to Seven cried. "The Slick hairstyle is the freshest there is!" Once he finished his sentence, the blue-eyed inkling released the trigger, sending a beam of purple ink right through the inkling with the headphone's chest, instantly splatting him. The inkling left standing gasped and snapped, "How dare you!" He threw a burst bomb at them, though both girls swam away before it could land.

The two jumped down to the ground and swung around the bend, where the inkling with the backwards cap awaited them. Via ran up to him and started swinging her Octobrush Nouveau, quickly splatting him. Gesturing for Bonnie to follow, the wavy-haired inkling put the bristles down to the ground and started running, leaving a trail for her friend. The beige-skinned inkling slipped into the ink and swam to the middle area, which had been covered in orange ink since they had been splatted. On the top of the center platform was an inkling wearing a tennis headband. Once his green eyes spotted the inklings, he aimed the Splattershot at them.

"So, you splatted Seven and Kevin?" he gibed. "How? Did you dance, so they decided to splat from embarrassment?"

"Hey, I'm a good dancer!" Octavia protested. "I took ballet classes as a kid!"

"So did I," Bonnie added, "but I'm still not a good dancer."

"Well, you'll have to dance if you want to splat me." The boy with the headband shot a few bullets of ink into the air before rushing towards them. He leaped into the air, a glowing orange circle appearing around him and the girls.

"Splashdown!" Via cried. "Run!"

Slipping into her squid form, the blue-eyed inkling barely managed to escape the ink splash spawned from the Splashdown. However, some of it still managed to get on her, but she ignored it as she threw a point sensor at her attacker. Noticing the swirling black arrow, he growled and started running towards her again. Gasping, Bonnie dove into her ink and swam away towards the Rainbow Squids' spawn point. The inkling with the headband continued to chase her, covering the area in orange ink in the process. Once she was far away enough, she started charging up her squiffer. When it was full, she shot out the ink beam, but he jumped over it, the shot narrowly missing him.

Soon, a wave of ink crashed down in front of her, though the other inkling swam back towards the middle, causing it to miss. Looking beside her, she saw Inigo and his Carbon Roller, though he frowned when he realized it missed.

"Inigo!" the inkling with the double bun exclaimed upon his arrival.

"Hey," he greeted, standing up after kneeling. Orange ink started to push its way back into their side of the map, the boy with the headband reappearing. This time, he was joined by the boy with the Firefin facemask. "I splatted again, but now that I've respawned, I figured I should go help you."

"Thanks," Bonnie started, "but now's the time to fight." The two brothers had inked a circle around Bonnie and Inigo, trapping them.

"And there's no way you can escape," commented the boy with the facemask. "You're trapped."

"Not if we get one of you first," the inkling with the ponytail teased, attacking the other inkling with a vertical swing. The boy with the headband stepped out of the way and started shooting at his opponents. At the same time, the blue-eyed inkling shot a charged shot at the boy with the facemask, though he dodged the shot as well.

"You're gonna have to be faster than that," the boy with the headband sneered. "Too slow, aren't ya?" He threw a burst bomb at the two squids, and they leaped out of the way, causing the bomb to land at his brother's feet instead. The two quickly inked a spot where they could stand, and they readied their weapons again.

"Are you faster than this?" Inigo threw an autobomb at the ground. It stood there for a moment before it started to waddle on over to the inkling with the headband.

"Agh!" He took a few steps back before looking over at the boy with the facemask. "Devin! Do something!" He opened his mouth to respond before a purple beam pierced through him, splatting him. The autobomb stopped moving and started to expand, causing the remaining inkling, presumably Evan, to scramble away. The resulting explosion got some purple ink on his back.

"I'll go after him, Bon-Bon," the fair-skinned inkling announced. "Stay here!"

"Will do." She watched as her friend put the roller down, pushing it along to create a trail of ink. With that, she covered up the orange ink with purple ink and turned around to see the other side of the area. Seeing it was purple, she decided to swim until she came across orange territory again. She reemerged from the ink on the top of the ramp she followed at the beginning of the match, seeing that the area was now covered in orange. She started shooting her squiffer to cover it back up.

A few seconds later, however, a whistle blew, marking the end of the game. Sighing, she sat down with legs crossed, looking at the turf her team managed to cover. _We lost for sure,_ she concluded. Now, all she had to do was to wait for Judd and Li'l Judd to arrive.

Some time later, the two cats did. They were positioned on top of the glass domes near where Bonnie was sitting. Moments later, they did a little dance before Li'l Judd struck out an orange flag, causing Judd to fall on his belly. _I knew it_. The beige-skinned inkling stood up, and then she prepared to super jump back to the tower, soon launching into the sky.

The inklings arrived at the room displaying their results. The Rainbow Squids could only get as far as inking the entire walkway leading to the center of the map. The rest of it was covered in orange ink, as expected. Still, Bonnie had a frown on her face as she watched the Splatuplets celebrate.

"We won!" Kevin cheered. "Team Werewolf is gonna win for sure!" This only earned glares from the opposing team. None of the brothers commented on the matter.

"Well, it's only the first match," Inigo tried to assure his friends. "Maybe we'll win the next one?"

"And if we're lucky, Team Vampire will win the entire Splatfest," Bonnie added.

Roy gave a slight grumble before saying, "That defeat was still humiliating…"

"Well, we're done with you," Seven suddenly piped in, walking towards the exit of the room. "C'mon, boys, let's find someone else to beat."

"Yeah!" the other three inklings cheered, and they promptly left the room.

Seeing the other team's departure, everyone slumped onto the ground, awaiting their next challengers.

"Let's try to win the next one, then," Octavia chimed in. "I'm not letting that leave a black mark on me." Everyone else murmured in agreement. Hopefully, they would charge into the next battle with renewed courage.

_We're not gonna be pushed down this time!_

* * *

**A/N: Though the Final Splatfest has passed, at least past ones can be embodied through the Splatfest chapters! Speaking of the Final Splatfest, my plan is to end this story once we get there... which won't be for a few more years. So, you still have plenty of content to enjoy before we get there! Regardless, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter, and Branchwing, out!**


	20. Going in Blind

_Inigo's PoV_

"Hey! Penny!" Inigo called from within the hallways of West Inkopolis High School. Mornings were the perfect time to talk to other people, as no classes have started for the day.

A fair-skinned inkling with yellow-orange hair and green eyes stopped walking and turned around to look at him. "Hi," she simply greeted.

"Have you seen my heart anywhere?" he asked, a goofy smile on his face. He snapped his fingers and pointed towards her. "I heard it was stolen by you, love."

"Wha- I already have a boyfriend, Inigo!" she complained. "Your pick-up lines won't work on me!" With that, she turned around and walked away, head up high.

The indigo-haired boy simply lowered his hands and frowned. _I'm not surprised._ Looking up at the clock, he got another idea. He could try flirting again… but with a different girl. He still had time before his first class, after all. Looking around, he spotted another pretty-looking inkling with pale skin, cyan hair, and bright blue eyes coming down the hallway. Her name was Celia, a girl in Inigo's math class.

"Yo, Celia!" he proceeded to call. "Could ya come over here for a sec?"

She approached the inkling with a ponytail. "What do you need?" she asked.

"You know what I need?" A small blush crept up his face. "You."

Celia was unimpressed. "No, thanks." The long-haired inkling with cyan hair simply walked away, deflating Inigo's ego once more. He sighed and leaned up against the lockers.

"Let me guess, flirting didn't go so well," a familiar voice suddenly said.

He jumped, whipping his head around to see the newcomer. "Gah!" When he saw that it was just Roy, he let out a sigh of relief. "Don't sneak up on me like that."

"Sorry," he apologized.

"And, yeah… it didn't go so well."

A smirk crossed his friend's face. "Y'know, I got an idea."

"What, what is it?"

"You'll find out later." Winking, the red-haired inkling started walking backwards, towards one of his classes. "See you later.

"Umm… bye." He gave an awkward wave goodbye and started walking to his first class for the day.

Hours passed, and now Inigo arrived at his lunch table with the other Rainbow Squids. When he arrived at the table, they went silent and pulled out their phones. His indigo eyes dashed between them, confused on what was going on. _I hate being left out of the loop…_

"Hey guys… what's up?" he tried greeting.

"Oh, nothing much," Bonnie replied.

"But, Inigo," Octavia spoke up, lifting her head up from the cellphone. "Do you know what Coral Rings is?"

"It's a café in the Reef, right?" he asked to clarify.

"Yep," Yuri confirmed. "You don't mind going there after school, do you?"

"Why?"

"You'll see."

"Well, at what time?!" Inigo then asked.

"That's to be decided," Roy replied. "I'll tell you in history, alright?" he then added, giving a pat to his friend's back.

Still upset by the lack of communication, the inkling with the ponytail groaned and started to eat his lunch. The conversation quickly changed subjects, and no matter how much he wanted to bring up Coral Rings, he never found the right moment to do so. When the period ended, Inigo silently got up from his seat and started walking towards his next class. _I'm not being fresh right now, am I?_

Even later in history class, Roy and Inigo were working together on a group project. While he glued a typed paragraph Roy wrote onto the posterboard, the tan-skinned inkling nudged him, and he paused to see what he wanted.

"So, y'know the date we were talking about at lunch?" he started.

"A date?!" Inigo gasped. "You never anything about a date!"

"Well, that's why you're going to Coral Rings," Roy clarified.

"With who?!"

"That's a secret."

"Oh, so it's a blind date?"

"Yeah."

"So, what time am I going?"

"4 o'clock, sharp. Don't miss it!"

"Sounds like a plan."

More time passed, and Inigo now found himself standing outside of the café Coral Rings. It was a simple café, with a dark brown exterior and a yellowed sign reading the name of the place in bold letters. He opened the extravagant oak doors to see the interior of it. The floors were made of white tile, and the walls were green with lighter polka dots. On the right side of the place were tables made from oak, with seats with green cushions surrounding them. On the left side were the white marble counters, with stools resembling the normal chairs seated at them. Most of the people there were jellyfish, though there were other sea creatures present as well.

Suddenly, he spotted a familiar wavy-haired inkling sitting at the counter. "Via!" he exclaimed.

She spun the stool around to face him. "Hey, Inigo." In her hand was a coffee mug, and she took a sip out of it. "I reserved the table over there for you and your date." She pointed to a table with a vase of flowers on the top of it. "She isn't here yet, so just wait for now, okay?"

"Alright…" He walked over to the aforementioned table and sat down, twiddling his thumbs. He started staring at the entrance, waiting for someone to step through it. He assumed it would be an inkling, but nothing was certain.

A few minutes later, another inkling walked through the doors. She appeared to be a little shorter than Via, with fair skin and short, deep violet hair. Initially, she had SV925 circle shades obscuring her eyes, but she took them off to reveal navy eyes. She wore a Squidmark LS, shorts, and sesame salt 270s. She chatted with Octavia briefly before walking up to the table Inigo was sitting at and taking a seat.

"Hi!" she greeted with a high, cheerful voice.

"Hi." Inigo gave a small wave. "So… you're my date?"

"Yeah!"

"So, uh… what's your name?"

"Fable."

"Mine's Inigo. Nice to meet you."

"I knew that, but nice to meet you, too!" They shook hands, and then they sunk back into their seats. A jellyfish walked over to them and plopped two menus on the table. The inkling with the ponytail picked one up and examined it.

"What are you gonna have?" he asked. "I'll take tea."

"Tea? Why not coffee?" Fable asked.

"I don't like coffee," he replied. "It's too bitter."

"Not if you add a lot of sugar!"

"Aren't you an avid coffee drinker," he muttered.

A sea anemone with an apron walked up to them and greeted, "Hello! May I start you off with a drink?"

"Tea, please," Inigo answered. "Just your normal blend."

"And I'll take coffee. _Black _coffee," followed the purple-haired girl. "And make sure to bring a lot of sugar!"

"Alright." The sea anemone wrote their drinks down on a notepad and then shoved it into her apron pocket. "We'll get right on it!"

"Great." He watched her step behind the counter and give the notepad to a jellyfish. They poured coffee mix into a machine and activated it, the drink soon flowing out of it. While it was running, they then put a tea bag into another mug and prepared it. A few minutes later, they put the two mugs onto a tray and gave it to the waitress. She then walked over to Inigo and Fable and gave them their drinks.

Fable immediately tore several sugar packs and dumped them into the coffee before mixing and taking a large sip of it. "Delicious!"

Inigo took a much smaller sip. "Green tea?" he guessed. The sea anemone nodded.

"Are you ready to order?" she then asked.

"Oh, no," the indigo-haired inkling replied, shaking his head. "I was watching you make the drinks the entire time.

"Well, I'm ready," Fable commented, "but I'll wait until you're ready."

"Alright, I'll come back in a little while," concluded the sea anemone, and she walked away from their table.

Inigo returned his attention to his date. "So, what are you having?"

"I'm getting some bagels to go with this coffee. It's the perfect snack!"

"Hmm… then I'll get a biscuit. It goes perfectly with tea."

"Okay. While we wait… can you tell me one of your pick-up lines?"

"Pick-up lines? I don't have any lines, but I can pick _you_ up." He winked. When it came to romance, those seemed to be the one thing he was good at. He wasn't too crazy about Fable, though. Something about flirting with her just didn't feel right. He could easily go up to someone he was attracted to and say one of his signature lines, but with others, it just felt forced.

A goofy grin crossed her face. "That's wonderful! Can you do more?"

"More? Umm… I don't need more, because I have you?"

"Another one?"

He paused to think of one, and then he said, "I would traverse the deepest oceans for you, even if it kills me?" Considering that inklings die in water, it didn't make much sense, but it was still a valid pick-up line.

The sea anemone waitress walked up to their table again and asked, "Are you ready to order now?"

"Yes! I want some biscuits!" Inigo immediately responded.

"Buttered?" The inkling with the ponytail nodded. She turned to Fable and asked, "What about you, miss?"

"A bagel. _Seasoned,_ mind you," she requested.

"Alright, we'll get right on it." The waitress stuffed the notepad into her apron once more and returned to the kitchen.

"Seasoned bagels? I like mine plain," the indigo-haired inkling commented.

"Seasoned bagels are good!" the violet-haired inkling argued. "They add more flavor!"

"My point still stands." Inigo took another sip of his coffee and leaned back in his chair.

"So… are you a sailor?" Fable then asked after a few moments.

"My grandpa was," he replied. Inigo looked down at the blue sailor suit he was wearing. "He hunted salmonids back in the day."

"So, he did Salmon Runs? Cause I love those!"

"I guess… though it wasn't called that back then."

"What did he do with the golden eggs?" she asked.

"I think he destroyed them. Simple as that."

"Aw…"

"What?"

"The salmonids are _so_ cute! Destroying their eggs… it's like driving them to extinction!"

"Well, the past's the past. They're still here, and that's what matters."

"Umm… right!"

The sea anemone soon came back with a tray consisting of a bagel and some biscuits. She gave them to Fable and Inigo respectively and bowed. "Enjoy!"

"I've been waiting for this!" The short-haired inkling took a huge bite out of her bagel. "Mmm… So good!"

Inigo started to eat his biscuits, drinking his tea every-now-and-then. "So, how do you know Via?"

"Oh, we met last year. We were lab partners in chemistry class. You're in some kind of group with her, right?"

"Yeah, the Rainbow Squids! You see, all of us usually have a different ink color, like a rainbow." He was about to mention Geneva's absence when he found himself unable to form the words. He frowned, and more solemnly, he added, "Geneva's on vacation, though, so we're missing green right now. Via's sister Alexis is our replacement Geneva, but… it isn't the same without her."

"Geneva… Didn't you date her for a while?"

"Yeah. We got together a month or two before the Squid Sisters' final Splatfest, but we broke up at the beginning of the year." The memory of the break-up started to resurface in his mind, and he bit his lip. _Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry…_

"Aw. Well, you'll find someone else." Fable smiled. "Like me!"

"Sure…" Inigo ate another biscuit. _Yeah, this isn't gonna work out._ Mentioning Geneva dampened his mood, something that made him realized he hadn't quite moved on yet from the break-up. _Not now, at least._

The two finished their food and drinks and waited for the waitress to come buy again and bring them their bill. Quickly she did, gathering up the plates and handing them their bill.

The girl took it and read it. "2,000G? That's not bad."

"Not bad at all, for such a nice café."

"I'll pay," Fable announced. She took out 2,000G from her pocket at set it on the bill, and then she added a tip.

"That's that, then," Inigo concluded. "Shall we go?"

"Of course!"

The two inklings got up from their chairs and walked towards the entrance, where they found Octavia with a nauseous look on her face. The employees of Coral Rings said goodbye, but right now, their focus was on her.

"I think I drank too much coffee…" she groaned, gripping her stomach.

"Do you need a bag or something?" the violet-haired inkling asked. The wavy-haired inkling held up an empty paper bag.

"Can one of you take me home? Please?" Via begged.

"I will," Inigo offered.

"Thanks." She exited the building to walk to his car. The other two inklings followed her. Funnily enough, their cars were parked right next to each other.

As Octavia climbed into Inigo's car, Fable said, "I guess this is goodbye."

"I'll still see you in school, y'know," the indigo-haired inkling pointed out.

"I know," she acknowledged, "but we won't be alone."

He sighed. "True. We could hang out again some time."

"Alright. Bye!"

"Bye!"

The two climbed into their cars and drove away.

* * *

**A/N: I'm so sorry this is a day late, I just couldn't finish it in time. Summer work got in the way, so the bulk of this chapter was written late in the week. In the end, I had to delay this chapter a day. I'll try my best to make sure this won't happen again, but in the meanwhile, enjoy this chapter. It's a little rushed, especially towards the end, but my point still stands. Stay tuned for next Sunday, and Branchwing, out!**


	21. Haunting Raps

_Perry's PoV_

After school, Perry and Yuri hung out at the former's mansion. Currently, the purple-haired inkling was browsing SplatCloud, when he noticed the replay count on his rap regarding Pearl, fittingly titled, 'I Love Pearl'.

"Yuri, do ya see this?!" he exclaimed, surprised.

"See what?" he asked, getting up from Perry's bed and putting his phone away to look at the computer. His eyes widened after a few seconds. "A thousand views?!"

"I know! It's my most listened-to song now!" the pale-skinned inkling enthused. "We should make another one!" he suddenly suggested, hopping out of the chair he was sitting in. "One about Halloween. Since, y'know, it's tomorrow."

"It's Octavia's birthday, too," the dark-skinned inkling reminded his friend. "You did send that package to her house, right?"

"Of course I did! How would I forget?" As a birthday present, Perry squeezed out enough money to buy her the limited-edition milky Eminence set, something so costly that few people even own it.

Yuri simply nodded in approval. "So, whatcha gonna do now?"

"I'll go make that new rap," the purple-haired inkling deduced. "Getting a thousand views on 'I Love Pearl' is somethin' we should celebrate!" He pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil, titling it, 'Halloween Song'. Now, he had to figure out the lyrics, including making them rhyme.

"Do you need help?" the dark-skinned inkling asked.

He shook his head. "No, I'm fine. I'll call you when I'm done."

"Alright."

The next day, after school, Perry promptly called his friend to tell him the good news—he was done writing the lyrics of his new song.

"You're gonna let me mix it again, right?" the yellow-haired inkling eagerly asked.

A smile spread across Perry's face. "Of course!"

Roughly a half hour later, someone rang the doorbell, and soon, footsteps rushed up the stairs of the mansion. A knock came to Perry's bedroom door, and he let the newcomer, Yuri, inside. He had already pulled out the sound mixer for the spiky-haired boy to use, hooked up to his computer and everything.

Yuri sat in Perry's normal chair and asked, "Ready?"

Holding up a microphone and the paper with the lyrics on them, the pale-skinned inkling said, "Ready."

Pressing a button, the dark-skinned inkling soon gave a thumbs-up as trap music began to play. "This is a Halloween, / Also known as a Splatoween: / The day where you trick, / And eat 'til you're sick. / Treat yourself to some candy, / It's sure to make you feel dandy. / Or you can wear a mask, / Or other stuff to complete the task."

The beat started to pick up as he moved on to the bridge. "Feelin' queasy? / Take it easy. / If you're ready to go, / Go put on a show. / It's the night, / That gives you a fright!"

He paused, waiting for the beat to drop. Once it came, he continued singing. "Halloween! It's the most haunting day! / Splatoween! Celebrating in a festive way! / Halloween! For kids and adults alike! / Splatoween! When the ghouls like to strike! / You don't need to be scared, / I'm sure you'll be spared, / But just in case… / Keep up your pace!"

Now, it was time for the second verse. "What's wrong with werewolves? / They roam the woods, / And the cities and the towns, / Except the sacred grounds. / A vampire looks like us, / Why would you find them in the brush? / I know they won, / But werewolves are still the one."

The purple-haired inkling sang the bridge and chorus once again, where his words were followed by an instrumental. He saw Yuri mess around with the mixer, creating a more frightening sound to the music. Perry gave a thumbs up to his friend to show his approval.

When the music calmed down, he started singing the third and final verse. "When midnight draws near, / The kids will shed a tear, / But parties go through the night, / When the monsters take flight. / No matter who you are, / Prepare to face the bizarre. / It's Halloween, what did you expect? / It's Splatoween, go have fun. / If you object, / Consider yourself done."

Perry finished off the song by shouting, "Happy Halloween!", and then the music cut off abruptly. Yuri stopped recording, and the pale-skinned inkling dropped the microphone. He walked over to the computer.

"Good job!" the dark-skinned inkling complimented. "It's one of your best songs yet!"

"Thanks." He smiled and pressed a button to playback the recording. While the song played, he started humming along to it. _Yuri's right; this turned out great!_

After the recording finished once more, he said to his friend, "I'll take over from here."

"Glad you are," the yellow-haired boy commented. "I have to take my brother and sisters out trick-or-treating tonight."

"I wish I could trick-or-treat," Perry muttered. He walked over to his closet and pulled out a dusty gas mask. "Last year, I barely got any candy, just because I was only wearing a mask! Besides, I have to put the finishing touches on this and upload it."

"Aw…" He frowned. "Maybe we could go together next year? Just like when we were kids. We could buy costumes and run around the neighborhood getting as much candy as we can!"

"…Maybe. We'll see what happens."

"Well, I have to go now. Bye, Perry!"

"Bye, Yuri."

The dark-skinned inkling left the room, leaving Perry to work on his song, all by himself.

* * *

**A/N: A very short chapter, but we gotta have an update on Perry's rap career, right? ;) Hope you like it, and Branchwing, out!**


	22. Sugar Crash

_Roy's PoV_

"_Ugh…_" Roy moaned, resting his hand on his belly. "I don't wanna go to school." The night before, Roy, Alexis, Bonnie, and Inigo had gone trick-or-treating together. Octavia was too busy admiring the new outfit she got for her birthday, Yuri took his siblings trick-or-treating, and Perry was busy working on his rap song. Obviously, Geneva couldn't come with them, so she was out of the question as well. Once it neared midnight, everyone went back home, and the red-haired inkling immediately dove into his stash of candy. The problem was, he ate a little too much and stayed up a little too late. Now, he felt sick and tired.

"Roy, get up," his mom demanded, tugging at his arm. "I'm not letting you skip school, and you're doing exactly that by lying in bed all day."

The red-haired inkling sat up and slumped over, groaning. His mother let go of his arm as he started walking towards the kitchen to make breakfast. Walking into the room, he saw his father, drinking a cup of coffee while reading the newspaper.

While he was preparing cereal, Roy's father looked up from the paper, pushing his glasses up the bridge of the nose. "Roy? Is something wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," he growled. _I wish I could sleep in and not go to school._ The tanned inkling took the bowl of cereal with him to the table and set it down before starting to eat it. A grumpy look on his face, he ate in silence, minus the loud crunching.

"I think you're lying," the older inkling pointed out, stroking his thick beard. "You're acting a lot more… angry than you usually do."

"_Nothing's wrong,_" he restated more firmly. Trying to ignore his stomach pain, he continued eating his cereal rather slowly. With no one saying another word, Roy threw the cereal bowl into the sink once he was done with it. Turning into his squid form, he started slithering back to his room. He half-expected one of his parents to notice, but neither of them said a word, instead watching in awkward silence as he advanced into his room.

Once he entered his bedroom, he transformed back into kid form and shut the door. He put on his usual shorts, a King jersey, and red hi-horses before exiting and finishing his morning routine, sans doing his hair. Without saying goodbye, he hopped into his car and drove to school.

When he walked into the high school, a few people immediately took notice of his sluggish attire and movements. The red-haired inkling didn't bother pushing his stray tentacle out of his face; it was like a sick day for him, except it wasn't.

"Roy, are you alright?"

"Roy, what's wrong?"

"Roy, you look tired."

"Can you shut up?" the tan-skinned inkling snapped at the group of freshmen following him, egging him with questions about his well-being. "I'm fine; there's nothing wrong." As he said that, a wave of nausea came over him, and he leaned against a group of lockers, uneasiness washing over his features.

"You should go to the nurse," one of the freshmen suggested. "You're not okay."

"Yeah, the baskfishball team doesn't want a sick player!" another one agreed.

"I don't have baskfishball practice today," Roy pointed out. "I have work after school."

"Still!" the second freshman argued. Ignoring her, he straightened again as the nausea faded and started walking to his first class. From then on, that group of freshmen were no longer following him, much to his relief.

As soon as he walked into his math class, he took his seat at his desk and turned into a squid. He closed his eyes, hoping sleep would welcome him. He was almost successful when the first bell rang, snapping him back to attention. He transformed back, looking around frantically. Once he noticed the clock, he sighed and leaned back into his seat, wiping the drool off his face.

He didn't pay attention to the lesson at all. His longing for sleep was on his mind the entire time, and he swore he almost dozed off a few times. The teacher passed out a practice sheet, which was filled with graphing problems. He grumbled and shoved it into his math binder. He wasn't in the mood to do it now.

The rest of the morning went by in a tired, sick haze, with bouts of nausea every now-and-then. By the time lunch came, he simply sat down at the table without buying a lunch at all. He put his head down on the table and watched as his friends arrived.

"Um… Roy?" Inigo asked, tapping his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," he replied, annoyed. "People keep askin' me that today and I hate it."

"You aren't eating anything," Bonnie noted. "And I've heard you don't seem like yourself today."

"Did you eat too much candy last night?" Octavia teased. She was wearing her new Eminence cuff instead of her classic straw boater today. "Alexis did that, so she stayed home today."

_Lucky_. "Well, I did get a lot of candy from trick-or-treating last night…" He shook his head. "Look, I'm tired, alright. That's it."

"C'mon, Roy, we know about your sweet tooth," Perry sneered.

The red-haired inkling remained silent, his eyes averting their gazes. He could confess why he was acting the way he did today… or he could not. _My friends know me so well…_ Roy wasn't sure how to feel about that. All he felt right now was embarrassment.

"You ate too much candy," Inigo deduced.

"Yeah," he found himself saying. "I did." He messed around with the tentacle covering his face.

"And your parents still made you go to school?" Yuri puzzled. Roy nodded in response. "That's… kind of sad."

"I know. I just want to sleep."

"Can't you take a nap after school?" Bonnie asked.

"I have work," he pointed out.

"Oh," the blue-haired inkling realized. "After work?"

"I have homework."

"You're not getting a break, huh?" she remarked, biting her lip.

"You should take a _long_ nap tomorrow after school," the fair-skinned boy suggested. "Gotta catch up on sleep somehow."

"That… won't make a difference," Roy deduced.

"So… you'll suffer?" Inigo concluded. The red-haired inkling nodded. "Yikes…"

"I can handle it." The boy straightened, clenching his teeth as another bout of nausea rushed through his body. "I can handle it."

* * *

By the time Roy arrived at Starfish Drinks to begin his shift, he was absolutely exhausted. He checked in, put on the uniform, and arrived behind the counter to start preparing coffee. He felt his entire body cry for sleep, but he knew he had to push through the day. _And then it'd be over_.

"Blacktip?" a familiar voice greeted. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Molas, using the coffee machine next to him. "You look tired."

"I am," Roy confirmed. "It's been a long day."

"You go trick-or-treating?" He nodded. "That's nice. I wish I could still do that."

"Why don't you anymore?"

"I just lost the Halloween spirit one day. I haven't gotten it back since."

"I see." The inkling with his hair swept to the side took the filled cup out from the coffee machine and took the order ticket alongside it. Writing 'Saiman' on it, he walked over to the counter and called, "A coffee for Simon!"

An older male inkling with a shaved head came up to take the drink. When he read the name on it, he threw the coffee cup on the ground. "Seriously?! Saiman?! What is wrong with you people?"

"This guy again?" Molas exasperated. The inkling with the side ponytail walked up beside Roy and crossed his arms. Yellow eyes narrowed at Simon. "Seriously, why do you keep coming here?"

"This is the closest coffee shop to my house! And if I can't get a quality coffee cup with my name spelled correctly, then what gives?!" the older inkling ranted.

"You didn't even drink the coffee," Roy pointed out.

"My name, which is spelled S-I-M-O-N, is important, too!"

"Sorry about Blacktip here," Molas tried to apologize. "He's still a rookie. And a tired high school student."

"You spelled my name wrong last time I came here!" Simon argued, pointing a figure at the young adult inkling. "All you Starfish Drinks baristas are still the same—young, inexperienced, and stupid!"

"Woah, calm down," the inkling with the ponytail said.

The older inkling, arms outstretched, leaped at the two baristas. Both of them turned into squids to avoid being grabbed by him before quickly transforming back and running out of his reach.

"Security!" Molas called. "Help!"

"Yeah, help us!" Roy agreed.

Quickly, two police officers ran into the coffee shop and rushed towards Simon. They apprehended him, with the older inkling kicking his legs wildly in an effort to hurt them.

"It's those kids' fault," Simon growled. "They don't know what they're doing!"

"You're that upset over a misspelled name?" one of the officers deadpanned. "Starfish Drinks baristas do it all the time, it's nothing new."

"What's going on out here?" a voice suddenly boomed. Swinging his head around, Roy saw Miles Carp, who was standing in the doorway of the employees-only area. The door was wide open, and the inkling with white-tipped hair had his arms folded. His orange eyes scanned the coffee shop, and then he bellowed, "Who called security?"

Molas raised his hand. "I-I did." He grabbed his shoulder. "I had to, that guy was trying to attack us."

"Hmm…" Mr. Carp relaxed and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he asked, "Is this the same guy that attacked you back in August?" Molas nodded. "I see. In that case…" His eyes shot like daggers at the police. "Take him away, cops. And he's forever blacklisted from this location."

"What?! You're agreeing with those kids?!" Simon exclaimed in disbelief. "They're so dumb! Why did you even hire them?"

Roy's lip drew into a snarl at the older inkling's words, but the inkling with the ponytail put a hand in front of him to stop him from attacking. "Don't," he whispered.

Without any other words, the older inkling was dragged away in handcuffs, screaming expletives at them. When he was gone, business resumed. Molas walked back to the counter and took some orders, while Roy went back to brewing drinks. He rubbed his eyes. The confrontation with Simon seemed to have waken him up somewhat, but he still felt tired. When he finished a frappuccino, he took the order slip and wrote 'Lehzie' on the cup.

He called for Lizzie, and a beige-skinned inkling Alexis's age came up to the counter. "You're not gonna yell at me, are you?" he asked as he handed the cup to her.

"No, I'm not crazy," Lizzie replied. "I just want my drink."

"Good." Roy smiled. "Good." Much to his relief, it looked like the rest of the day would go without any disturbances, just the way he liked it.


	23. Sisterly Bonding

_Octavia's PoV_

"Alexis!" Octavia called, holding two tickets up in the air. "Guess where we're going?"

The younger inkling set down the book she was reading and looked up at her sister. "Where?"

"Shellendorf Institute!" she exclaimed.

"The museum?" Alexis groaned. "Can't we go to Wahoo World or something?"

"We go to Wahoo World every year!" the wavy-haired inkling protested. "Can't I choose the location for once?"

"Fine." She put down her book and put on the sandals next to her bed. Smiling, Via gestured for her sister to follow her, and the two ran down the stairs, out of the house, and into the car. Starting it up, she immediately began driving to the museum once Alexis was in the car.

About thirty minutes later, they arrived at a large, stone building with grand windows. The engraving above the entrance of it read 'Shellendorf Institute'. They parked in the parking lot and walked to it, tickets in hand. The tickets in question were won in a raffle at school, enough that "you and a friend can go visit the Shellendorf Institute!". Octavia had never been here before, so she was interested and signed up for the raffle. She was originally going to go with Bonnie here, but something came up for the blue-haired inkling, so Via had to find someone else to take. That person turned out to be Alexis.

"Tickets?" the shark at the gates requested. The two inklings showed him their tickets, and he tore off the top of them with his teeth. The grand gates opened up, allowing the sisters access to the museum. Giving the smaller tickets back to them, he said, "Go on in."

"Thanks," Octavia replied. They briefly toured the courtyard out in the front of Shellendorf Institute, with beautiful hedges adorning it. When they stepped into the museum proper, the wavy-haired inkling could not believe how much bigger it seemed from the inside. A monstrous skeleton was the main display, its grand bones hanging over the glass ceiling in the middle of the main room. Stairs were present on the sides of the room, leading to other areas of the museum. A huge smile crossed her face. She knew it was the oldest museum in Inkopolis, but she never imagined it to be _this _big! On the other end of the museum was a gift shop. _We're going there after we tour every single bit of the museum!_

"Can we check out that skeleton first?" Alexis eagerly asked. "It's huge!"

"Sure," Via responded. She scanned the area for information pertaining to the skeleton. From what she could see, there was a display in the very middle of the museum, where there was a gap in the glass roof. "I bet we'll find something there," she deduced, pointing to it.

"Then, what are we waiting for?" the younger inkling remarked. "Let's go!" Grabbing her sister's hand, she ran towards the middle of Shellendorf Institute. On the way, they were yelled at for running, so they slowed down to a walking, yet quick, pace.

When they arrived at the display, the wavy-haired inkling was a little disappointed to see that its sides depicted a mural displaying inklings and a golden egg. However, the sprint to it was not totally in vain, as there was text on each side of the box, both of them explaining different artifacts.

"'One of the largest creatures of its time, the _Temnodontasaurus_ was a genus of ichthyosaurs—marine reptiles—from the early Jurassic period in Europe. It generally lived in deeper areas of the open ocean,'" Octavia read out loud. Below the text was a picture of a marine animal that reminded her of swordfish. She glanced up at the skeleton hanging above them. "Well, they were right about it being big."

"Not just big, it's _huge_!" Alexis added. "They aren't exaggerating when they said it was one of the largest creatures of its time!" The short-haired inkling then gasped and excitedly asked her, "Can we go see humans next?"

"Humans? Sure." Looking around for some signs, she soon saw one pointing towards an exhibit regarding the previous era. Tugging on her younger sister's hand, the two started walking towards the exhibit, and soon, they were met with several small cases displaying various artifacts. The majority of them were trapped in stone, though the main display was a large container displaying a human skeleton. One jellyfish in front of the case was imitating the pose it was doing.

"…Interesting," the younger inkling remarked. Alexis walked up to the text next to the human skeleton display and read, "'Humans, or _Homo sapiens_, were the dominant species on Earth during the late Quaternary period. They, along with many other land-dwelling animals, went extinct as a result of the flooding of the Earth 12,000 years ago. Humans left behind their technology, allowing us sea creatures to evolve as far as we have today.'" Via walked up next to her to look at the reading. Below the text was a picture of two humans, one male, and one female.

"Sometimes I can't believe humans made all this technology," Octavia remarked. "I mean, their skulls are so small, so their brains are probably small, too, right?"

"Yeah, they seem pretty primitive from the looks of it," Alexis agreed.

"Oh! Have you seen that one scroll someone donated to the Museum d'Alfonsino?"

"The Museum d'_what_ now?"

"It was an art museum. Back when the Squid Sisters hosted the news, it was a stage we could play on. Y'know that tsunami that hit Inkopolis earlier this year? It got a direct hit from it, so it had to be closed down for repairs."

"Oh… They saved the stuff in there, right?"

"Oh, yeah. I don't know where they put it, though."

"So… what was on the scroll?"

"It was a picture of a fossilized human and some other things. The notes say it was doing some kind of ritual."

"That seems like history. Why was it donated to an art museum and not here?"

"Who knows?"

"Well, can we look at these human artifacts, now? I don't wanna stand here all day."

"Oh, alright."

The two sisters walked over to the smaller display cases and examined the objects inside. They did not look like anything special; they were simply gadgets humans could use. A lot of them, as expected, resembled devices the inklings use in the modern day.

Alexis tapped the glass case of one of them. "Ooh, a toaster," she commented.

"You wanna go somewhere else in here now?" Octavia later asked. "Like, the insect exhibit? Or that one display they have about DNA and music?"

"Wait, DNA and music?" the short-haired inkling suddenly chirped up. "How does that work?"

"We could go look," the wavy-haired inkling offered. She adjusted her hat while waiting for an answer.

"Alright." With a nod, the sisters walked back towards the middle area of the museum, walking up the ramp. Soon, they arrived at a large, black wall depicting three DNA strands. Next to each strand depicted a symbol with headphones and a smartphone on it. On the right side of the mural was a wall of text explaining them.

"'Music is an essential in inkling culture. It has been suggested that some songs have been carved into their DNA, granting powerful effects to those who listen to them. The most well-known song is the customary chorus of Calamari County, which began as a way to both celebrate and respect the bounty of the sea,'" Via started reading. "'To the left are samples of these songs, which can be played by scanning the QR codes with a smartphone. It is recommended to wear headphones, as inklings may start spontaneously dancing without them.'"

"'Spontaneously dancing'?" Alexis tried to suppress a laugh. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard!"

"I mean, you could resist the urge to dance," the wavy-haired inkling pointed out. "It can't be that hard… right?"

"Let's see…" She pulled out her phone and some earbuds. Plugging the earbuds into it, she scanned the code next to one of the DNA strands. A few moments later, a smile came across her face, and her eye began to twitch. "Oh… I really want to dance."

"Let me have a listen." Alexis gave one of the earbuds to Via, and quickly did she hear a familiar tune. She started tapping her foot to the beat. When it was over, the younger inkling put her phone back into the pocket. "Sounds like Calamari Inkantation," she commented.

"Calamari Inkantation?"

"Y'know… the Squid Sisters song. Very popular." She raised an eyebrow. "How have you never heard of it?"

"I don't watch TV, Via. How would I know?"

"Right…" Scratching the back of her head, Via then asked, "You wanna go look at the insects now?"

"Sure." Nodding, the two inklings started heading down the ramp to the right side of the museum, where, as expected, they found cases filled with a variety of insects. None of them were anything noteworthy.

"This is boring," Alexis remarked. "It's just bugs."

"Well, they can have a lot of history, like…" The wavy-haired inkling walked up to the display and looked into it. "…I don't know, actually."

"Exactly! So why are people interested in this?"

Octavia shrugged. "Eh. Maybe people just want to look at bugs."

"Let's move on," the short-haired inkling requested. "…What else is there to see?"

"There's the other parts of the museum, like artifacts from the Great Turf War, stuff related to salmonids, and ancient inkling history," the older inkling recalled. "What do you think about that?"

"Sounds kind of boring."

"Not even salmonids?"

"Salmon Run seems kind of shady, to be honest. I mean, you're stealing the eggs of a race just to be paid? That's low."

"Hey, it's fun! Maybe if I take you on one, you'll like it, too."

"Good luck convincing me." Alexis turned around and started walking towards another part of the museum, causing Octavia to run after her.

"Hey, wait up! Where are you going?!"

"Somewhere else. Maybe I'll find something interesting."

_At least you're staying in the museum._ "But what if you get lost? Do you know how upset we'll be if we lose you?"

"Who's 'we'?"

"Mom, Dad, the other Rainbow Squids…" Via paused, frowning. "And me. I can't imagine life without you and your constant bickering."

"Funny you mention your friends." Her sister's orange eyes darted away from her. "They like ignoring me."

"_Ignoring_ you? What gave you that idea?"

"They care about each other more than me! Seriously, when the Great Zapfish went missing, you and your friends didn't even care. Don't you care about the future of the city? We could run out of power if we don't get it back!"

"Why do you care about the Great Zapfish so much? It'll come back by itself! That's what happened last time."

"And how long did that take?"

"I dunno… two or three months? It'll be three months since it disappeared the second time later this month, so it should come back soon."

"What if it doesn't? What would happen then?"

Octavia relaxed and started thinking. "…I don't know, actually. But I'm sure it's nothing we should worry about."

"Ugh! Just face it, Via, I'm never going to replace Geneva in the Rainbow Squids, aren't I?"

"I…"

"You'll just ditch me when she comes back." Alexis walked over to a bench and sat down, crossing her arms. "And I'll be lonely again. Because I'm not as good as her."

"Alexis…" The wavy-haired inkling sat down next to her sister and threw an arm around her shoulder. The younger inkling looked up at her, clearly upset. "Even when Geneva comes back…" She smiled. "You've become a true member of the Rainbow Squids. I don't think I can ever imagine us without you ever again."

"You really think that?"

"I do." The two hugged briefly before standing up. "Now, c'mon. Let's finish our trip."

"Alright."

The two resumed their tour of Shellendorf Institute, in hopes for a happy end to the day.


	24. Night Run

**Mr. Grizz's dialogue is taken from Splatoon 2.**

* * *

_Yuri's PoV_

Sighing, Yuri plopped onto his bed, twirling a new backwards cap around his finger. He took off his headphones and set it on his nightstand. After celebrating his birthday, he felt absolutely exhausted. He thought about going to sleep when suddenly, his phone chimed. The dark-skinned inkling picked it up to see a message from Bonnie, asking him if he wanted to do a Salmon Run on this November night.

_I didn't even know it was open!_ He sent her a message replying yes, and he lifted himself off his bed and put on the backwards cap. As quietly as he could, he walked down the stairs and left his house, jumping into the car and driving off towards Grizzco Industries. When he parked, he immediately saw the inkling with the double bun, leaning against the wall next to the entrance and texting on her phone. The dim lights illuminated her head

"Bonnie!" Yuri called. The beige-skinned inkling snapped up from her phone and looked over at her approaching friend. She smiled and waved. "Ready for the Salmon Run?"

"Of course. I've been waiting for a while." Bonnie looked up at the sky. "It's getting pretty late. We should hurry."

"Right, right." The two inklings walked into the building and were met with the site of the familiar bear statue. Mr. Grizz said his normal greeting, followed by the spiky-haired inkling asking, "Can you send us on a shift?" An elevator soon popped up, and the two walked into it. It descended as the two stood in stifling darkness, and soon the floor of the elevated hissed open, revealing the grate. Yuri and Bonnie slipped into it, and soon, they were on a boat.

On it were two inklings, already in uniforms. One was a fair-skinned inkling with green, slicked-back hair and matching green eyes. Though he previously had a smirk on his face, he frowned upon seeing their arrival. The other inkling was familiar, having beige skin and purple eyes. Long hair the color of the ocean draped over her shoulders. Within an instant, he recognized her as the girl that wielded the Splat Dualies from the Flight vs. Invisibility Splatfest. Upon seeing Yuri, she turned her attention from her nails to the dark-skinned inkling and scoffed.

"Oh, splatling boy," she greeted coldly. "It's you."

"My name's Yuri," he corrected.

"Whatever." She resumed her attention to her nails.

"You know her?" Bonnie whispered to her friend.

"I battled against her once." He didn't feel like elaborating.

"Funny you say that," she noted. "I battled against that guy there during the last Splatfest," she then added, pointing to the green-haired inkling. Turning to him, the inkling with the double bun asked, "…Which one are you?"

"Devin," he replied. "Seven doesn't like Salmon Runs, so I sneak out in the middle of the night to do these."

"Mask guy. Alright..." Bonnie muttered.

"Are you part of a team?" Yuri then asked to the boy, who appeared younger than them. It was logical to assume so.

"Yeah, the Splatteruplets," he confirmed. "Y'know, because we're quadruplets… and we all use the Splattershot."

"Can you two just get dressed," the girl demanded. "We'll be there soon."

"Geez, alright," Yuri stated, annoyed. He and Bonnie did not say another word, not even to each other as they took the uniforms hanging on the clothesline and walked below deck towards the changing room. As Yuri dug through his pockets to take out his possessions for storage, he found something unexpected within them. _Huh?_

In the palm of his hand was a small coin made of bronze. In the middle of it was a hole, complete with a language he did not recognize engraved on its surface. It did not take him long to remember how he got it. When his siblings got home from school today, he decided to go play with them outside. As fate would have it, he dug up the coin and decided to keep it. Apparently, it did not take long for him to forget about it. He smiled and plopped the coin into the box laid out for him to put his stuff in.

Soon, Yuri arrived back on deck, with the other two inklings talking to each other. Devin appeared to be flustered, covering his mouth.

"For the last time, I'm not telling you how I got that!" he hissed at the purple-eyed inkling.

"…Got what?" Yuri interrupted, curious.

"He has this scar on his lip," the girl replied. "I just want to know where he got it from."

"C'mon!" Devin cried. He turned his back to them. "I'm not gonna even talk to you."

The spiky-haired inkling decided not to elaborate on the matter, respecting the boy's wishes. The girl, on the other hand, continued to prod him about his supposed scar, with him turning away each time. At one point, the yellow-eyed inkling caught a glance of a small line running through the fair-skinned inkling's lip. Curiosity started to egg its way into Yuri, though he didn't want to anger Devin any further.

Some time later, Bonnie arrived above deck and shouted, "What's going on here?"

The three inklings looked at her, and conversations ceased. The dark-skinned inkling gulped. Things were about to get serious.

"Uh… nothing!" the fair-skinned inkling lied. "Nothing at all!" He threw his hands out hysterically.

"Don't be silly," the purple-eyed girl snapped, pulling on Devin's ear. "You never answered my question."

"O-o-ow… You were harassing me about it!" he cried, gritting his teeth in pain.

"Knock it off, you two," Bonnie demanded. "We need to work together if we want to this Salmon Run to be successful."

"It's her fault!" the green-eyed inkling blamed, pointing at the other beige-skinned girl. He groaned. "This is gonna be the worst, I just know it."

"Can't we all be friends?" Yuri tried to compromise.

"No, we can't," the long-haired inkling replied bluntly. "Not everyone gets along."

"At least try to work together. Just this one time. Please…? For my birthday?" he begged.

"Wait, it's your birthday?" she realized, bewildered.

"Yeah, I'm 17 now."

"_17?!_" Devin exclaimed. "That's so old!"

"It's not that old…" the inkling with the double bun murmured, putting a hand on her arm.

"Happy birthday, but it doesn't mean I'll be nice to you now," the purple-eyed girl warned.

Yuri looked over the deck, seeing the sky shift into a sunset. In the distance was an artificial island of some sort, with docks sprawling off of the central building. It was the Lost Outpost, and since it was abandoned, it was the perfect place for salmonids to gather. He tipped his hat and smiled.

"Ready?" he asked.

"We're already there?" the green-haired inkling asked. Everyone around him nodded. Without much question, they all changed their ink colors to hot pink. A few moments later, everyone launched away from the boat, towards the inside of the central building.

When Yuri reemerged from the puddle of ink present on the spawn point, he found himself holding a Jet Squelcher. _I guess this will do_. He started to fire it, covering the area inside the building. Devin and the girl with purple eyes started covering the area outside the building.

"The egg basket is ready and waiting," Mr. Grizz's voice echoed as an egg basket shot up through a ramp that was up against a wall. "Now go get me some golden eggs!"

A few seconds later, a foghorn sounded, followed by a scream. Running to the source, he learned two things. One, the tide was high. Two, and more importantly, the purple-eyed inkling had been swallowed by the waves, and now she washed up shore in a lifesaver. He quickly revived her, where she simply let out a huff in response. To their dismay, something tall began emerging from the water. The girl was knocked over as pots slammed into her, with Yuri pulling her out before she could splat again.

"Stupid Stinger…" she grumbled, holding down the trigger of the Mini Splatling she was holding. She rose to her feet, and a moment later, she let go of it, letting a fast stream of ink shoot towards the boss salmonid. Yuri started shooting at it to help her, and before it could shoot a beam of green ink, it exploded into three golden eggs.

"Over here!" the dark-skinned inkling called, snatching one of the golden eggs. As he pushed his way through the crowd of lesser salmonids, he and the girl managed to drop the ones they collected into the egg basket. However, as they tried going back to collect the third egg, a Scrapper appeared, blocking the exit. Some of the ink from the exhaust pipes squirted onto them, covering their uniforms in the harmful green goop.

As they shot it in order to break down its shield, footsteps started coming closer and closer, and Yuri whipped his head around to see who the newcomer was. Bristles down on the floor, Bonnie was wielding an Octobrush, and now she bolted towards them. She threw a golden egg into the basket and swung around the now-stunned Scrapper, flicking pink ink at its tail. It did not take long for the boss salmonid to splat, leaving behind more eggs for the group to collect.

Though Yuri picked up one of the golden eggs the Scrapper left behind, he peaked out of the doorway to look for the last golden egg from the Stinger. Near the edge of the water was a Snatcher, waddling towards safety as it carried something shiny. He pressed the trigger on his Jet Squelcher in an attempt to splat it, but it dove into the water before the bullets could reach it. Though he was a little disappointed that they were unable to get the final egg, another opportunity rose as a Drizzler leaped out of the water.

"Where's Devin?" Bonnie asked suddenly as the Drizzler landed.

It shot a green missile into the air, which the purple-eyed inkling started shooting as she replied, "I don't know."

"Should we look for him?" Yuri asked as he fired his Jet Squelcher at the overturned Drizzler. Though the torpedo did not end up firing back towards it, he managed to get a sustainable amount of damage on it before it hid itself under the umbrella again.

"I'm here…" moaned a voice. Turning around, the dark-skinned inkling saw a lifesaver inching towards them, a pink ghost bobbing within it. Barreling past him was a Steel Eel, facing them as it snapped its metal jaws. "That got me over there."

"Oh, for cod's sake." The purple-eyed girl pulled out a bomb and threw it towards him. Devin huddled towards it as it exploded, reviving him so he could join the fray. Immediately he swam towards the driver of the Steel Eel, shooting at it with the slow, yet powerful bullets the .96 Gal produced. The boss salmonid's machine soon collapsed, leaving behind some golden eggs at the end of it.

"Booyah!" the inkling with slicked-back hair cheered. He started tossing the eggs into the basket as the Drizzler flew overhead. Once it landed once more, it fired another missile into the sky. Before anyone could shoot it down, it exploded into a green cloud, raining down enemy ink.

"Quick! Splat it!" Bonnie demanded, running towards the squirming salmonid. Weapons started firing at the boss salmonid, and soon it splatted, leaving behind three golden eggs. The victory was short-lived as a green bomb landed next to them, starting to glow as it expanded. "…And now we run!"

Everyone leaped out of the way of the bomb, with Yuri landing on the ground on his belly. The explosion hit him directly in the back, the ink burning as he then submerged into the ink to heal. Some Smallfries started racing towards him, so he quickly reemerged to throw a bomb at the ground before hiding again. It exploded, ridding the area of Smallfries. Now, as he transformed back once more fully healed, he looked straight towards the front entrance. A Steelhead stood in the doorway, towering over the inklings as it charged up its bomb once more.

Another bomb was unleashed from the Steelhead, dotted with pink ink from the few shots the team managed to land. It launched in Yuri's direction, so before it could explode, he jumped out the open window towards the thin strip of land situated outside the building. Some Chums and Cohocks started lumbering to him upon his arrival, but Yuri simply started to fire his Jet Squelcher, hoping to eventually push through them.

As the dark-skinned inkling walked back to the central building entrance, he heard whirring overhead, followed by a more distant explosion. He stopped firing to look up at the Flyfish that had just arrived, hovering around for a little bit before opening its launchers to fire. He saw its bulging eyes glance down towards him, and a few seconds later, a green target marking him circled his feet. _Carp!_

The spiky-haired boy threw a bomb at the salmonids' feet and swam past them in attempt to avoid the missiles. However, as soon as he stepped into the central building, green glowing rings started hovering around him. As he heard the missiles come closer and closer, he used the last of his ink to throw a bomb towards the ground, allowing the Maws that lunged into the air to eat both him and the bomb. He screamed as the boss salmonid devoured him, though not long after it exploded into pink ink from the bomb it swallowed.

"Got splatted, huh?" he heard the purple-eyed inkling jest as he respawned. She was giggling, though a Scrapper quickly ran her over, splatting her as well. At this point, Yuri started to get nervous. The Flyfish was still out there, and now there was a Scrapper and a Steel Eel swarming the building. His eyes drifted up to a familiar figure floating into the air, a launcher in hand.

"Hold still!" Bonnie called as she piloted the Inkjet. She pulled the trigger, and a blob of pink ink sped towards him, reviving him on impact. That bullet was followed by another one, this time aimed towards the purple-eyed inkling's lifesaver. Almost immediately after she was revived, she began charging up the Mini Splatling.

"Take out the Steel Eel," Yuri advised. "That'll make things a lot easier."

"Don't you talk to me!" she snapped. She started firing at the Scrapper.

"Bu-"

"We need to survive, not golden eggs."

"Taking out the bosses would help us survive," the inkling with the double bun pointed out as she flew back to where she activated the Inkjet. The long-haired girl simply ignored her, continuing to fire at the Scrapper until its shield broke down. From there, she whipped around it to take it down. Quickly she did, as it exploded a few seconds later.

Out of the corner of his eye, Yuri saw someone leap into the air, ink swirling around his fist. It was Devin, preparing a Splashdown as the Steel Eel and other lesser salmonids cornered him. He crashed to the ground in a vortex of ink, splatting all the salmonids around him. With that, everyone rushed to grab the golden eggs the boss salmonid left behind, and as they put them into the egg basket, more missiles came crashing down on the team. Bonnie received a direct hit from one, splatting her. The others were hurt as well, but they were now simply stuck in the ink.

"Oh no…!" the inkling with fair skin gasped. Suddenly, another round of missiles came crashing down on them, splatting them all.

"Ooh, crew wipe," Mr. Grizz commented over the radio. Once all four inklings respawned as lifesavers, they all super-jumped back to the boat in which they arrived on. "Let's see how many golden eggs ya got. 17? Not terrible."

"_Not terrible_?!" Devin cried as soon as they revived. "That is terrible!"

"Don't fret, Dev. At least we met the quota for this round," Yuri tried to reassure him.

"I dunno, we didn't get through the rest of the rounds," the girl with purple eyes pointed out.

"True," the dark-skinned inkling agreed, "but it's the fun that counts, right?"

"Right," Bonnie chimed, pumping a fist.

"No, it's the money that counts," the green-eyed inkling grumbled. "We won't get paid if we keep losing."

"Why not try another one, then?" Yuri suggested.

"It won't work out, not with her here at least." Scowling, he pointed at the long-haired inkling.

"What's wrong with me?!" she cried.

"You're selfish and intrusive!"

"Well, you're stubborn and incompetent!"

"What?! Am not!"

"Oh, yes you are!"

The two inklings continued arguing while Yuri and Bonnie hung to the wall, awkwardly watching them in silence. He sighed. Perhaps they should find another crew to work with. He inched towards the door leading below deck, his fingers wrapped around the handle.

"You leaving?" the blue-eyed inkling whispered to her friend. He nodded. "Mind if I come with you?"

"Oh, not at all," he replied. "I'd hate to leave you here with these guys, after all."

"Aw, thanks." Bonnie smiled.

"Oh! Can I show you something?"

"What?"

"You'll see." Yuri opened the door and stepped inside. "C'mon!"

Bonnie nodded, and she followed the dark-skinned inkling inside. Racing down to the storage room, the spiky-haired inkling excitedly pulled out the box that contained his belongings. Opening it, he saw the coin he had found, laying right next to his phone. With the beige-skinned inkling watching with curious eyes, he picked it up and threw a hand forward, balancing the bronze piece between his fingers.

"Ta-da!" he announced. "I found it earlier today."

"A coin?" she puzzled as her expression dropped. "Looks old."

"Yeah, I bet it is. Look at the writing on this thing!" He handed Bonnie the coin for her to inspect it.

Placing a hand on her chin, she nodded. "Mhm. Looks old alright."

"Ya think humans used it?"

"Yeah." She gave the coin back to him. "I do."

Yuri simply smiled and put the coin back into the box. "Well, I'm getting dressed now." He grabbed his clothes from the clothes rack near the entrance. "See you soon!"

"See you soon, Yuri," Bonnie's voice called as he walked farther and farther away from the room. "See you soon."

* * *

**A/N: At last, author's notes return! I didn't say anything for the last few chapters because, well, I had nothing to comment on. Anyways, this chapter is one of the first lengthy ones in quite a while! I feel like it was rushed towards the end, but I hope you enjoyed the dynamics between everyone and this failed Salmon Run. Leave a review if you want, and Branchwing, out!**


	25. Assault and Stomp

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**Much of Marie's and Sheldon's dialogue, as well as the mysterious voice's and Octostomp's dialogue, is taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

_I have to win this time!_ was Alexis's first thought when she entered the Octorian replica of Humpback Pump Track once more. Throughout the place were the echoes of octoling laughter and the dim hum of the containers containing the mini zapfish. Again and again, she got her butt kicked by them, especially by the dastardly elite octolings. Whenever she least expected it, one swung around the corner, bringing her down with her roller. She was getting sick of this happening over and over again. She clutched the Hero Dualies tightly. Today was the today; she could feel it.

Immediately upon her arrival, she dashed towards the first container she could find, taking out the Toxic Mist Sheldon oh-so-carefully warned about. Next, she saw one of the octolings leap into the air, preparing a vertical swing. She dodge-rolled out of the ginormous splash of magenta ink aimed towards her and shot at the soldier once she landed. Quickly, she splatted, allowing Agent 4 to proceed. She broke the container and snatched the mini zapfish inside.

"First one in the bag," commented Marie. The bronze-skinned inkling jumped down to the ramp below and started running towards the one at the end of the track, using the rolonium provided to paint a pale teal track for her to swim through. She kept a steady eye out for any enemy octolings, but she was surprised to see that no one jumped out at her. She shrugged and obtained the second mini zapfish. "Number two. Count it!"

Her moment of peace was short-lived as another wave of magenta ink came crashing down on her, breaking the Hero Suit. _Oh, no!_ She rolled over to the gusher behind the container she just opened and activated it, allowing a stream of ink to shoot into the air. She submerged in it, though she started to cough as the mist behind her activated. Emerging on top of the geyser, she turned around shot at the vial until it broke. With it out of the way, perhaps she would finally recover. The gusher ran dry, and she fell to the floor where the trigger was. At that moment, her suit repaired.

The octoling that had shattered it previously now climbed up onto the platform where the broken container stood, a diabolical smirk on her face. She swung her roller once more, the splash aimed directly towards Alexis. She rolled backwards and started shooting the Hero Dualies, inching closer and closer until the soldier splatted, leaving behind a puddle of her own ink. From there, she swam across the gap between her platform and the next, freeing the third mini zapfish.

"That's three. Let's gooo!" Marie cheered, clearly enthusiastic. Agent 4's collection of the third mini zapfish had triggered yet another vial of toxic mist, so she jumped down to the track below and kicked it, knocking it over and shattering it. She inked it just for good measure. She noticed ripples in the magenta ink sprawled out in front of her, racing towards her. Quickly, another octoling with a roller sprung from the ink and prepared a vertical swing. Alexis started shooting at her, the enemy ink grazing her shoulder as she rolled out of the way. She bit her tongue from the pain, but she knew she had to defeat this octoling, or else things would turn for the worse. The octoling took another swing at her, breaking the Hero Suit once more. The short-haired inkling let out a cry of disbelief and rolled towards her, finishing the soldier off with the bullets from the Hero Dualies. Letting out a sigh of relief, she immediately hid in the ink puddle.

"You should really find some armor," the idol suggested.

"Yeah," she muttered as she healed. "I should." _It would protect me against another hit_.

Once she was able-bodied, she inked a path and swam up to the container. Busting it open, she freed the fourth mini zapfish.

"Number four. Halfway there…" Marie muttered. At that moment, she noticed an orange box behind the cell. Breaking it, a suitcase came out, so she picked it up and instantly found herself wearing a helmet and covered in padding.

"Sweet, armor!" Alexis cheered. With newfound confidence, she rushed towards the bundle of rolonium on the track. She heard someone leap into the air, and from above, she saw another octoling super-jumping. To where, she was uncertain. She soon saw her disappeared behind the rolonium, sending a spike of anxiety throughout her body. She jumped to the side to see the octoling raise her weapon and crash it down on the bundle. It went flying, crashing into the container the bronze-skinned girl had just broken.

When the rolonium regenerated, Alexis decided to use it to her advantage. While the octoling dived behind it, she started shooting, the bundle soon rolling right over the octoling, leaving a trail of pale-colored ink to follow. She swam down the track to the next mini zapfish, where she promptly busted it open and freed it.

"Number five. Look alive!" Sheldon soon exclaimed. Alexis looked around, planning her next course of action. "You can take that gusher and grab another one," the horseshoe crab advised.

"But that's where the elite octoling is!" Agent 4 complained. "And there's probably other octolings protecting her, too. The Octarians are having calamari tonight if I go up there."

"Hmm..." Marie started, deep in thought. "Wearing down her forces wouldn't be a bad idea."

"Yeah! That's why we can't go up there now!" she agreed.

"Then you'll just to save the others first," Sheldon concluded.

"Right. Get to it, Agent 4!" the idol added.

"Right." The bronze-skinned inkling walked up to the edge of the ramp near the last container and looked down at the puddle of enemy ink below it. From there, another octoling leaped into the air and prepared yet another vertical swing. Alexis jumped down to the puddle and swung around the soldier, quickly splatting her. She pumped a fist and ran over to the box with yet another cell, where toxic mist was activated once again. Once again, she shot at it until it broke before climbing up on it and saving the sixth mini zapfish.

"Six. Getting close," Marie communicated. From where she was standing, she saw a zapfish container on the hill in the middle of Humpback Pump Track, shooting a beacon of light into the air. Alexis squinted her orange eyes, making out two additional vials of mist surrounding it. "There'll probably be a lot of octolings around there. Be ready."

"I saved the one in the center before, I can do it again," the short-haired inkling boasted, twirling the Hero Dualies around in her hand.

"Yeah, _once_," she pointed out.

"My point still stands." Walking up to the edge of the platform, she threw out an autobomb as a far as she could, hoping it would detect something. It landed on the base of the bare hill, where, to her dismay, proceeded to explode immediately. However, a few orange crates did pop up instead. Swimming closer, she broke them to reveal a canister of power eggs inside. She aptly collected them and threw out another autobomb, which landed near the container. It started waddling somewhere, followed by an octoling emerging from the pool of ink surrounding the container. Alarmed, she started swinging her weapon wildly in an attempt to destroy it, but it ended up blowing up in her face, splatting her.

"Booyah…!" Alexis whispered. _But I can't let my guard down yet._ Creeping her way up the hill, she listened for the sound of octolings. When she believed the coast was clear, she emerged from the ink trail she had created to break one of the two vials stationed on the top. Afterwards, she hid again, listening to her surroundings. Looking up in the air, she saw one of the octolings super-jumping, landing on the fence with a vertical swing of the roller. Unable to spot Agent 4, the soldier paused, lifting her weapon off the ground. The bronze-skinned inkling took this as her chance to catch her off guard and splat her quickly, so she emerged from the ink while the octoling's back was turned, splatting her with a few shots of the dualies.

The remaining vial had activated, causing toxic mist to swirl around it. Alexis pointed her guns at it, anticipating yet another octoling to jump out at her. Indeed, another one jumped next to it, complete with another swing. Alexis simply dodged the splash and focused her attention of shooting down the vial. Without it, it would make taking down this octoling a whole lot easier. She swung her roller once more, breaking the inkling's armor. A few moments later, however, the toxic mist vial broke, causing the magenta cloud to dissipate. Alexis dived into the pale teal ink nearby to refill her ink, and once she had done so, she popped back up from the ink and shot down the octoling.

She let out a sigh of relief, having survived the ordeal. She broke the electric cell, freeing the mini zapfish inside.

"OK, there's seven," Marie affirmed. "Just one more."

Clenching the Hero Dualies, Agent 4 looked up at the single beacon of light remaining, marking the final zapfish's location. She could faintly see the kelp on the elite octoling's head in the darkness, gently waving around as she stood on the enemy spawn point. With a nod, she swam down the trail she had come from and ran back up the track, towards an inkfurler near the enemy spawn. Not hearing any additional octolings, she shot the inkfurler to unroll it, giving her a strip of her own ink to climb up. She ran past one of the busted containers and activated the gusher next to it, climbing up to the next level.

From there, another octoling emerged from the magenta puddle of ink and prepared to attack. The bronze-skinned inkling threw an autobomb at her and started inking a trail away from her. She heard the bomb explode, followed by the cry of an octoling and smiled. Soon, yet another vial activated, and she broke it shortly afterwards. Spotting a small orange box, she ran down the ramp to break it, revealing another case of armor. She picked it up, granting her the protection she had previously lost again.

She felt some ink rain down on her helmet, so she looked up to find the unsettling smile of an octoling, lifting her roller up for another strike. She rolled out of the way and started shooting at her, cursing the short range of dualies under her breath. The octoling slammed down the weapon once more, jumping down to the same level as Alexis. The short-haired inkling rolled forward and shot her, splatting her. Nodding, she started to run up the ramp to the top level, where the elite octoling was waiting. Enemy ink brushed her back as another soldier swung her roller.

When Alexis looked over her shoulder, she only saw a trail of ink shooting up into the air. Looking back at the ramp, she was met with a wall of ink racing straight towards her, breaking her armor. She wiped the magenta ink off her face, seeing the elite octoling preparing a swing again. Agent 4 rolled backwards as the roller crashed down once more, bringing up another wave. She threw out a curling bomb, though the elite octoling simply jumped over it. It bounced off the wall and raced down the hill, causing both of them to trip upon contact. It exploded behind Alexis, and she growled in frustration. She ran up to the elite and punched her, knocking her shades off.

Now, an angry blue eye focused on her, the other obscured by her hair. She lifted her roller, preparing to strike. In the meanwhile, the agent was firing her Hero Dualies, the pale teal ink blotching the octoling's skin as more of it got on her. As she was bringing it down, Alexis managed to deal the final blow, splatting her. Without a master, the roller crashed on the ground, splashing some of the magenta ink onto the bronze-skinned girl, though it soon disappeared with the rest of the elite octoling's clothes. Only the shades remained, the red glow it once had now gone. Agent 4 put it away before advancing to the final container.

_Finally_. On the highest point of the Humpback Pump Track was the final mini zapfish. She stared straight into its desperate eyes, lighting up with joy when it saw the agent. "You're safe now," Alexis muttered. Ignoring the toxic mist, she broke the container and hugged it, her eyes starting to water up from the joy and relief. She wiped away a tear and looked up at artificial sky. Transforming into a squid, she super-jumped back to the surface, with all the mini zapfish following her out.

When she emerged from the kettle, she heard a hissing sound in the distance. As happy as she was, she knew she had to fight the boss now. Alexis looked down at the eight mini zapfish circling her. She patted one on the head and told them that they were free. Nonetheless, they followed her onto the ride rail back down to the main area, where Marie was waiting, a smile on her face. The first thing the short-haired squid did upon seeing her was run up to her and give her a big hug, causing the idol to let out a small gasp of surprise.

"I finally did it, Marie! I did it…!" she exclaimed. "We won't be stuck here anymore!"

When she let go, the grey-haired inkling smiled awkwardly and gave the tearful agent a pat on the head. "Good job, Agent 4. I knew you could do it." She turned around to face the platform ahead. "But you still have to go into the boss kettle." She looked over her shoulder. "Now, go show 'em what us squids are made of!"

"Right!" Looking up at the grapplink up ahead, she pulled out the Hero Charger and fired a shot at it, launching her towards the next platform. She smashed the crates near the bulb of another ride rail before activating it, hopping on the rail afterwards. It circled around a grassy platform with two additional grapplinks surrounding it. She fired another shot at one of them, launching her straight onto the boss kettle. She switched out the charger for her preferred dualies and dove right into it.

"I could _really _use some more data on the dualies," Sheldon requested as soon as she spawned into the misty dome. "I want you to use it for a bit here. Though, you usually use it, so that shouldn't be a problem!" Alexis simply nodded and started to stare into the distance. She was quick to note the urban flair it had, decorated with street signs and advertisements. Lining the arena was something akin to a road, and the main area itself had some paneling missing from the floor. Having turquoise ink this time, she stepped up to the launchpad in front of her and turned into her squid form, promptly launching into the arena.

As usual, a zapfish, trapped in its barrier, hung over the magenta pile of goop. A large tentacle with green scarring emerged from the ink, quickly breaking the barrier and curling its slimy arm around the startled zapfish. It disappeared into the puddle, and soon sparks began to fly from it. With a golden glow, a cubic object with large, glowing eyes began to reveal itself to the world, magenta ink pouring off it like sand.

Once it was revealed in its entirely, it bellowed, "I'm _baaaaaaaaack_!" The roar echoed throughout the chamber, off-putting Alexis as her ears began to bleed. Ringing followed once it faded, and now the boss's sights were set on squishing the inkling.

"Wait! I know this guy!" Marie realized. "It's Octostomp!" The first thing Octostomp did was slide towards her, butting into Alexis and launching her to the bottom ring. With her Hero Suit broken, she watched as it leaped into the air and landed on the edge of the arena face-down.

"Octostomp? But didn't Agent 3 take him down years ago?" Sheldon asked, confused.

_Agent 3 beat this guy?_ Alexis thought, amazed. _I have to beat him! I can't let her down!_ From where she was standing, she saw Octostomp rise to his feet again, some ink dropping off of him. She covered her face to protect herself from the droplets. A little later, her Hero Suit repaired, making her ready for more. She inked the ramp leading up to the battlefield and climbed up it. In the corner of her eye, she saw the imprint of a face in the spot Octostomp fell on. She shrugged and threw a curling bomb out to the side to travel in.

"I guess he's back for more," Marie said. "You've got this, Agent 4!"

"How did Agent 3 beat him the first time?" the short-haired inkling asked, watching as the boss charged up to her. She rolled out of the way of his face-stomp, leaving him helpless on the floor.

"After he face-stomped, she inked his sides in order to get to the tentacle on his back," she replied. "So, you'll have to do that if you want to beat him."

"That's what I figured, but thanks for the advice!" While Octostomp was downed, she inked his side and climbed up it to be met with the large tentacle. She shot it until it burst, causing a stream of magenta ink to shoot straight into the air. She super-jumped to the edge of the arena to avoid any additional damage. The boss got up on his feet again, another tentacle soon popping out of the hole left behind. However, a silver, insulated coat soon appeared on him, leaving only his face exposed. A yellow buckle fastened it to his body.

"And I brought this sweet new coat!" Octostomp roared, causing the ink on the arena to dissipate. Alexis was left dumbfounded as a rotary cannon emerged from the top of the cube, sending a barrage of magenta ink raining down on her. She was trapped in the enemy ink, and soon the fire caused her Hero Suit to break once more, much to her dismay. She inked a path off the battlefield and slowly swam towards the outer ring. She leaned against the ramp, heavily breathing from the amount of effort she had to put in just to escape.

"Unthinkable…" Sheldon gasped. "His armor is completely uninkable!"

"_What?!_" Agent 4 cried. How was she gonna beat him now?

"Gotta hand it to these Octarians," Marie remarked. "They sure do know how to go big."

"Oh, c'mon! We have to find a way to get the coat off of him," she snapped, annoyed. Her suit repaired, so she climbed back up to the arena, where Octostomp noticed her and began sliding towards her again. She dodge-rolled of out of the way, determined not to be launched again. The boss jumped up into the air and crashed down on the floor once more, his legs swinging wildly upon landing.

"I don't know if you _can_," Sheldon remarked.

"Maybe the coat will just fall off him eventually," Marie sneered.

"That's not helping!" Alexis complained. Octostomp's legs began to spin as he prepared to get on his feet again.

"Well, until we figure out a way to get that coat off of him, you're best dodging to the side when he tries to face-stomp you," the idol decided. "Stay alive, and you'll be fine." The boss lifted himself up and jumped to the edge opposite of the inkling. He took a few steps before before pulling out the cannon again, firing yet another barrage of ink. "Splatling attack! Dodge-roll!" she quickly called.

"Ah!" Alexis threw out another curling bomb and rolled past some of the bullets, diving into the trail her bomb left and swimming away. Octostomp put away the splatling and started running after her again, falling over in attempt to squish her once she got close enough. She rolled out of the way, though some of the ink splashed onto her hoodie. He got up again and tried to face-stomp her once more. She continued dodging. This repeated for quite some time.

Some time later, Octostomp finally managed to smush her, sending her flying off the arena. She landed at the edge of the ring, only being saved by the railing. She groaned, being both injured and exhausted. She watched as the boss launched himself once more, landing on the edge of the field. Though she knew he couldn't hurt her from here, she still felt defeated.

_You can't beat him,_ a voice in her head taunted. _Agent 3 beat him, but you can't. You'll never be better than her_. She felt something wet roll down her cheek. _You're pathetic; you're not fresh at all._

"…Agent 4?" Marie muttered, concerned. Even when the Hero Suit repaired itself, she curled up into a ball, letting her sleeves be stained with tears from her failure. Her elation from earlier was no more. It had disappeared into nothingness, as easily as bosses clear ink from arenas with their roars. "Hmm…" The idol paused before speaking in a more cheerful tone. "Y'know, I don't get why he has a buckle on his nose. Does he think it looks cool or something? What do you think?"

"The buckle on his nose…?" Alexis murmured. A realization shot through her body, and she stood up, wiping the tears away. "I got it! I know how to get rid of the coat!" Contrary to its original purpose, the remark led her to getting an idea.

"What? How?" the grey-haired inkling asked.

"We shoot the buckle!" The bronze-skinned inkling climbed back up to the arena and charged towards Octostomp. She used the curling bombs to cover the floor in turquoise ink once more, as it had been covered in magenta as a result from the boss's face-stomps. His face was plastered all over the place, and now Alexis thought about covering them up.

Octostomp's bulging eyes shot out in alarm upon noticing Agent 4's return and began to run up to her. However, now she had a plan, she began to shoot the buckle as he got closer, covering it in turquoise. She dodge-rolled out of the way as he prepared to land. She used this time to ink the surrounding area. Once he got up again, the short-haired inkling resumed shooting the buckle. Eventually, it burst, destroying the coat and leaving Octostomp bare.

"Nice work!" Marie applauded. "You can ink his body now!"

"Booyah!" Alexis cheered, relieved she found a solution. She taunted the boss, spurring him into attacking her. He started sliding across the arena, though she simply rolled out of the way and started running to where he would land. Once he was stuck on the ground, she quickly inked his side and climbed up him to reach his exposed tentacle. She shot it until it exploded into a geyser of magenta ink, prompting her to super-jump away from him.

When the tentacle regenerated, he became armed with a more padded coat. He turned around, and two additional faces popped out from his sides. All three faces let out an even louder roar before, giving Alexis a headache and prolonged ringing in her ears. Immediately afterwards, the renewed boss began stomping towards her in the newly-cleaned arena. The additional faces made it harder to roll to the side, so she jumped off the edge and onto the outer edge.

"_GAAAAAAUGH! _THIS DUDE JUST GREW TWO MORE FACES!" Marie screamed in her ear. The agent grunted from the pain her ears were receiving.

"Don't make me go deaf!" she protested.

"I'm sorry! It's just that he's terrifying now!" she explained. "But we have to focus if we want to defeat him."

"Right." She climbed back onto the arena after Octostomp landed, emerging next to one of his new faces. However, he was quick to get up, as a few moments later, he was back on his feet. He began running towards Alexis again, who was shooting at the buckle on his face. She was backing up towards the middle of the arena in order to have more space to evade his attacks. It seemed more resistant this time around, as it wasn't long until he tried to face-stomp her again. She simply dodge-rolled out of the way and waited for him to get back up.

The ink sprayed across the arena increased greatly once Octostomp jumped to his feet. He then jumped away from Alexis and pulled out the splatling once more. She tried her best to dodge them, though she soon found herself stuck in the magenta ink once more. _Not again! _She threw out another curling bomb to get closer to him. Unfortunately, he put away the splatling and immediately fell over on his face, catching the short-haired inkling off-guard. She was flung across the arena as her suit broke once more. She landed near the edge, groaning as she looked up at Octostomp. Once again, he was sliding towards her. Alarmed, the short-haired inkling rolled off the stage and into the outer ring.

Once her Hero Suit repaired, she climbed back up, where the boss was waiting. He leaped into the air to crush her once more, but she dodge-rolled backwards to successfully evade his attack. He got up again and started walking towards her with heavy footsteps. Alexis took a few steps closer to shoot at Octostomp's buckle before he tried face-stomping once more. She jumped back down to the outer ring to avoid it, and now she was running along the track, trying to get farther away from him. She returned to the arena on the opposite side, just in time for Octostomp to resume a standing position.

Once again, Octostomp tried his sliding attack. Again, she threw a curling bomb to the side for a speedy escape. The boss was down again, though given a few moments, he was back up on his feet.

"He just won't quit, huh?" Marie commented.

"Yeah, that's for sure," Alexis agreed. She ran towards Octostomp as he started waddling towards her again, shooting the buckle. Soon, the final blow was dealt to it, and the coat burst, destroying his additional faces and revealing his body once more. He roared, upset. The inkling pumped a fist and swam away.

"That's it! Ink him up!" the idol cheered. Octostomp tried charging towards her once more, jumping as soon as he drew near Alexis. She dodge-rolled out of the way and inked the side of his body, climbing up him to reach the tentacle on top. She fired the Hero Dualies at it until it burst, sending out the final geyser of ink gushing out of Octostomp. She super-jumped away from him as watch as he tried to get up, though his efforts were in vain as he malfunctioned and blew up in an eruption of turquoise ink.

When his remains faded away, Alexis saw that the arena was covered in a blanket of her own ink. Power eggs flew towards her for his defeat, and the zapfish floated in the very center of it, unharmed. A single Sardinium was positioned in front of the container. She picked it up and broke the barrier, freeing the zapfish. She tackled it and grabbed it, squeezing it into a hug. With a huge grin on her face, she super-jumped out of the dome.

As soon as she popped out of the kettle, she heard Marie's voice speak over the headset. "Agent 4, I want to thank you again for all you've done so far."

"It's no problem. Anything to save the Great Zapfish," Alexis responded.

"About that… For me, it's not just about saving the Great Zapfish," the idol started, a ring of sadness to her voice. "Even more than that, I want to find my cousin Callie. She vanished on the same day as the Great Zapfish!"

"Yeah, I know," the short-haired inkling pointed out. "I know how much you miss her…" She sat down on the ledge of the grassy platform. "If my sister went missing, I'd try to find her, too."

"…So, anyway. I'm Agent 2 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, and Callie is Agent 1. Then there's Agent 3, who's currently out with our grandpa, Cap'n Cuttlefish. They won't be back for a while," she continued.

"Wait, the captain's your grandpa?!" Agent 4 exclaimed, surprised.

"Yeah. It was him who recruited Callie, who in turn recruited me," Marie explained. "While the Cap'n was away, I was supposed to be protecting Inkopolis, but then… Callie… the Great Zapfish…" After she finished that sentence, she sighed. "Sorry I didn't tell you more about this sooner… We'd be totally sunk without you, Agent 4." More hopeful, she added, "I know we'll find Callie if we keep looking! Think you can see this thing through?"

"Yeah…" Alexis smiled. "I think I can."

"Great."

Suddenly, another voice interfered in the radio feed, the same voice from earlier transmissions. "Lea… No… _Leave now!_"

"Huh? Who's there?" Marie demanded. "If you get in our way, Agent 4 will mess you up!"

"Yeah, so don't come back!" the younger inkling finished. After that, the mysterious voice did not speak again. The transmission ended, and Alexis heard something short out. She saw the barrier surrounding the launchpad to the next area break, granting her access to it. From there, she activated the ride rail next to her and road it down to another platform. She jumped off onto solid ground and looked over at the launchpad at the end of the platform.

"Callie and the Great Zapfish are somewhere up ahead, Agent 4," the idol informed.

"Before I go, I have a question," she said.

"Which is…?"

"Did Agent 3 fight Octostomp here, too?"

"No… she battled him in Octo Valley. Most of the Octarians were there until she beat DJ Octavio, in which they've moved here since."

"How do you get to Octo Valley?"

She sighed. "…You're thinking about going there, aren't you."

"Maybe."

"Look, if you do, I won't stop you, but you won't really find anything over there. It's practically abandoned, just like Inkopolis Plaza. …That's where the manhole leading there is, by the way."

"Alright, thanks." With her question answered, she walked over to the launchpad and turned into a squid, allowing her to shoot into the sky to her next destination.

* * *

**A/N: Woo, the longest chapter yet is finally posted! I'm quite proud of this chapter, so I really hope you guys like it. The next few chapters are going to tie in with this one, some more than overs. So, stay tuned, and Branchwing, out!**


	26. Reverse Engineering

_Bonnie's PoV_

"So, Bonnie, what do you think?" Octavia asked, stepping out of her room wearing the full milky Eminence set. She flicked her longest tentacle behind her ear and put a hand on her hip, allowing her to present the outfit in its entirety.

"Oh, it looks good on you," Bonnie complimented. Even though it had been a week or two since Via's birthday, she was still surprised Perry managed to get it for her as a gift.

"Thanks." She grinned. "I'll be the freshest squid on the block in no time!"

"Right. Everyone will be jealous!"

"I know, I know!" Via tugged on her friend's hand. "C'mon, let's see what Alexis thinks."

"I think she'll like it too."

"I hope so!" The two ran to the young inkling's room and knocked on her bedroom door. "Alexis! Come see my brand new outfit!"

"OK." The door creaked open, revealing the short-haired inkling. She was fidgeting with some black shades. Her eyes glanced over her sister and then she sighed. "Oh. You're finally gonna wear the full thing?"

"Yeah, I think today will make for a good debut," Octavia replied. "…Though those shades look pretty fresh, too. Can I wear it?"

"No!" Alexis hissed. "They're dangerous!"

"How are they dangerous?" Bonnie chimed in. "They're just a pair of sunglasses."

"They're… uh…" She pressed a silver button on its frame, and a red glowing dot appeared on one side of the shades. "See? It just screams evil!"

"I'm not convinced," the blue-haired inkling said bluntly. "Where'd you get that, anyways?"

"I… found it on the ground! You see, I was out with my friends, and we just found this laying around. So, I took it, and I kept it," the short-haired inkling explained.

Upon her explanation, the beige-skinned inkling simply shrugged. _Seems reasonable._

"Do you know anything else about it?" Octavia asked.

"…No…" she murmured.

"We could ask someone if they know anything about it," Bonnie then suggested. "Like… the engineering teacher or his new assistant. One of them has to know something about this."

"Doesn't Marina of Off the Hook know tech stuff too?" the wavy-haired inkling brought up.

"Yeah, but you need money to go meet her in the studio," she rebutted.

"True…" Via admitted.

"Can't you guys ask Perry for money?" Alexis interjected.

"I doubt he'll say yes," the older sister pointed out, sighing.

"I mean, if _you_ want to ask him, go ahead," Bonnie added. "Besides, just going to a teacher is free."

"Alright, alright. I guess that's fair," the short-haired inkling admitted.

"Then…" Octavia smiled, pounding a fist into her hand. "I guess you know the plan."

"Should we tell the others?" the girl with the double bun asked, taking a moment to clean her glasses in the process.

"No!" Alexis burst out. "They shouldn't know about this."

"We're bringing it into school," Via argued. "People are gonna see those shades either way. Besides, I kinda want to tell them about this."

"Not if we stuff into a backpack!" the younger inkling insisted.

"Wouldn't they break?" Bonnie commented.

"Then… we'll just put it into a case," she corrected. "There! Problem solved!"

The wavy-haired inkling reached out to grab the shades out of her sister's hand, but the latter simply recoiled, taking a few steps backwards.

"You're not giving that up, huh?" Octavia teased. "You really think it's that dangerous." Alexis nodded furiously. "Well… keep it." Her orange eyes glanced over towards Bonnie's before returning her attention towards her sister. "We'll meet up with Bon-Bon tomorrow, then."

"…OK…" Alexis muttered.

The next day, Bonnie entered West Inkopolis High School to see the two orange-haired sisters, standing right by the entrance. Arms folded, Octavia had a smirk on her face, while Alexis looked off to the side nervously, fidgeting with her thumbs. When the former saw the blue-haired inkling, her mouth eased into a smile, and her arms fell to her sides.

"Bonnie! You're here!" she greeted. She jumped to her side, the footsteps of her new milky enperrials clacking against the tile floor. Though Bonnie's were a different color, the friends' shoes were identical. "Ready to go check out those shades?"

"Yeah." Her eyes glanced over to the younger inkling. "…You did bring them, right." She nodded. "Fresh."

The trio started navigating the vast hallways in the building. As usual, they were crowded with students, so they had to push through them in order to get to their destination. The room containing engineering class was appropriately labeled as such, with a graphic reading 'Engineering' proudly plastering above the doorframe. The door itself was already opened, so they simply took a few steps inside.

At the teacher's desk, an old inkling with faded red hair styled into a ponytail was toying around with some wires. His blue gaze was steady and unmoving as his hands, covered by fingerless gloves made of leather, connected them together to some machine parts. Footsteps could be heard from the other end of the room, and soon, a funny-looking inkling with short blue hair, exposing rounded ears, emerged, carrying an open box. The white apron she wore was stained with grease. Soon, she stopped, and her red eyes, covered by pilot goggles, drifted over to look at the newcomers.

"Sir! You have some visitors!" the woman called.

The old man looked up from his desk, his thick eyebrows raising in curiosity. "Hmm… I don't think you young ladies are my students. But, come on in, won't you? Make yourself at home."

The trio sat down on some stools as the blue-haired lady set the box on his desk. The elder teacher pushed the mass of wires aside, leaving a clear space.

"Mr. Fangtooth, we came here to ask a question," Bonnie soon spoke up after a moment of silence. "It's about something we found."

Via elbowed her terrified sister, and after a gasp, she quickly unzipped her backpack and pulled out a case. She opened it to reveal the pair of shades. Mr. Fangtooth's assistant's eyes widened upon seeing them, but regardless, she snatched the glasses out of the case and brought them over to the old man.

"Thank you, Miss Grim," he said as soon as she gave them to him, pushing spectacles up the bridge of his nose. He inspected the glasses before pressing one of the buttons on the side. The red dot on the left side of it lit up, casting a glow onto his pale face. Pressing another button, more colors began sliding across his face. He pressed the silver buttons again to turn it off. "Interesting."

"Do you know what it is?" Octavia asked.

"No," Mr. Fangtooth replied.

"Personally, I think it is Octarian technology," Miss Grim chimed in.

"Octarian technology?!" the wavy-haired inkling cried. "Why would you say that?" Though the inkling with the double bun was not too keen on the suggestion, it would make sense. She recalled reading in the history textbooks about the Great Octoweapons, used during the Great Turf War. They posed a great threat to inklings at the time, but luckily, they were stopped, and the inklings won the war.

"Well, well, Miss Grim. You might be right. It's been a proven fact that the Octarians have made several advancements inkling society hasn't," the old man explained. "For example, the propeller lifts found in Ancho-V Games originated from the Octarians." He held up a finger. "And, some other inventions have found their way into other stages today, like the ink rails that were recently installed in Moray Towers."

"There has been an increase in Octarian technology in Inkopolis lately," the funny-looking inkling added. "Specifically, in the past two years."

"Hmm… but still, why do you think the shades are Octarian tech?" Octavia continued to prod.

"I don't think there's any technology similar to this that's this compressed," the old man responded. "It's the only logical explanation we have."

"Also… where did you find this?" Miss Grim then added.

"I…" Alexis muttered.

"My sister found it on the ground," her older sister finished for her. "Where exactly? I don't know."

_She's been acting strange about this whole thing, too_, Bonnie wanted to add. Yet, she remained silent. She opened her mouth to speak, but then she faltered and gazed down at her feet. She couldn't understand why Alexis was so anxious. Usually, she was such a cheerful girl, always eager to have a battle. Right now, she remained silent for the most part, barely speaking.

"Well, if anything, we'll take it apart for you," he offered. "You'll have to come back tomorrow, though."

"That's fine," Via agreed.

"I've been wondering what's in it, anyways," the beige-skinned inkling added. She looked over at the short-haired inkling. "What about you?"

"Go ahead," she muttered.

"Thank you for your consent," the blue-haired woman then said, bowing.

"Alright." He smiled. "You're welcome to stay until the bell rings."

"I think we'll be on our way," Bonnie decided. They got up from their stools and started walking towards the exit. "See you tomorrow."

The following morning, the three inklings walked back into the engineering classroom to see the parts of the disassembled shades sprawled out on the desk. From the entrance point, Bonnie could see no one. Getting further into the room, she saw Mr. Fangtooth and Miss Grim helping two lobsters, one of which she recognized from when she helped out with Mr. Nema's chemistry class. They appeared to be working on a project.

"Mr. Fangtooth? Miss Grim?" Octavia called. "We're back."

The duo looked over at them and waved. "Ah, hello, young ladies!" the old man greeted. "Are you here about the shades you gave me yesterday?" The three nodded. "Well, right this way." The man with a red ponytail started walking over to his desk. "Make sure they're alright," he commanded the funny-looking inkling.

"Yes, sir," she complied, and she resumed her focus on the lobsters' project.

Mr. Fangtooth sat down in his chair and gestured towards the parts. "This is all the technology compressed into those little pair of glasses." He picked up one microchip and noted, "This one contains the data for the lights on the lens." He set it down and picked up a small, thin circuit board. "And this one gives functionality to the buttons, therefore controlling the lights." Setting down that piece of machinery, he put his knobby elbows on the table and clasped his hands, adding, "I also discovered that pressing the button multiple times will display different patterns."

"Anything else?" Bonnie asked.

"After we only had the frame to work with, Miss Grim tried it on. It fit her perfectly!" The teacher put a hand on his change. "Which is strange. I theorize that these were made for octolings."

"_Octolings?!_ This just gets stranger by the minute," the wavy-haired inkling blurted out.

"I mean… you did say it was Octarian tech, so…" the girl with the double bun recalled. The assumption of the shades being made for octolings wasn't too far-fetched.

"There is one thing neither of us could figure out, though," he continued. He picked up another microchip with a tiny red light on the corner of it. "It must have a purpose, but what could it be?"

"A tracking device?" Bonnie suggested.

"Or maybe it's… an evil thing!" Octavia followed.

"Whatever it is, it'll remain a mystery forever," he finished.

"Ahem."

Looking towards the entranceway, a girl with fair skin and thick dark hair was standing in the middle of it. She was wearing the shades Alexis had found, though kelp was protruding from the ends of the frame. She wore a black vest and fingerless gloves ending at her elbows, fashioned with a metal plate on her chest and two black belts wrapping around her waist. A white sticker was stuck onto the plate, marking her as a visitor. She wore black boots with silver heels as well. Her arms were crossed, and she was frowning.

"…I'm guessing that's an octoling," the blue-haired inkling whispered to her friend. Looking over at the younger inkling, she noticed that she had tensed, with beads of sweat dripping down her forehead.

It took a moment for Via to register what she had said, but then she screamed, "_Aah!_ An octoling!" Bonnie glanced over to the other end of the room, where the other people inside had snapped up their heads to watch the scene.

The newcomer studded over to the teacher's desk, taking a lollipop from the mug on it and sticking it into her mouth. Coldly, she said, "So, this is the where her shades go." _I was right?_ the blue-haired inkling marveled. _That was a tracking device?_

"Oh? Could you explain, deary?" Mr. Fangtooth asked.

"A time in the past, the inkling has break into a base octolings would be at," she started to explain. "She steal the shades of our elite. We think that we track her to stop her through her shades. It lead me to here."

"Wait a sec, my sister found these shades on the ground somewhere," the wavy-haired inkling snapped, throwing an arm out in front of Alexis. "There's no way she could break into an Octarian dome, much less an octoling dome. She's literally C- rank! The squid you're looking for probably dropped them."

"Are you the surest?" the octoling hissed. "She match the description of report—shortest of hair, orange eyes, and skin the bronze color."

"Nah, it's probably a lookalike," Bonnie dismissed.

"Hmph. I would have the splat of you if the people in front did not take my weapon from me," she grumbled, leaning towards Alexis.

"So… you want this back?" the old man offered.

"No." However, she swiped the microchip with the light on it out of the teacher's hand and clenched it tightly within her fist. Then, she took the lollipop out of her mouth, threw it into the trash, and stomped out of the room, leaving the group to their lonesome. She slammed the door behind her, starling the beige-skinned inkling.

Via put a hand on her chest and let out a sigh of relief. "That was terrifying. I thought she was gonna hurt us!"

"Well, I'm glad she didn't," Bonnie remarked. She was going to have nightmares of that octoling trying to splat her, she reckoned.

"…Alexis?" the older sister mumbled. Looking over at the young inkling, she was still paralyzed, refusing to move an inch. "Are you okay?"

After a brief moment of silence, Alexis relaxed and replied, "Yeah, I'm fine." She started heading towards the door and soon put a hand on the handle, twisting it to push it open.

"You sure?" Bonnie added. "You don't seem fine."

"I said I'm fine!" she snapped, walking out of the room.

"Alexis! Wait!" Via called, running after her.

The girl with the double bun shrugged and looked over at Mr. Fangtooth. "That's normal," she stated. "I guess I should catch up with them."

"Alright. Have a nice day," he said.

"You too." Bonnie left the engineering room, the encounter with the octoling still fresh in her mind. _What if she comes back? I can't let any of my friends get hurt…_


	27. A Twisted Reality

_Inigo's PoV_

The ending of the book, _Twisting Reality_, a love story between two inkling wizards, was one that left a smile of Inigo's face. Gently, he closed the cover and shelved it away. Now, it was time to participate in the Splatfest. He would be a little belated, but he hoped his friends wouldn't have started battling without him. He slipped his silver shoes on and raced out of his house, running down the streets towards Inkopolis Square.

By the time he arrived, he spotted his friends walking towards the Deca Tower. "Guys! Wait!" he shouted, trying to grab their attention.

"Inigo?!" Roy exclaimed, stopping in his tracks. Bonnie bumped into him, making the two of them falter. They apologized to each other before returning their attention to the inkling with the ponytail. "You're late!" he scolded.

"Sorry, I was finishing a book," he atoned, scratching the back of his head.

"Oh, what book?" Bon-Bon asked.

"_Twisting Reality_. You see, it's about two wizards who—"

"Oh, I've heard of that one! A friend in language class recommended it to me, but I haven't read it yet. Is it good?"

"Oh, yeah, it's super fresh! I loved it!"

"Sorry to rain on the nerd parade, but we're here to battle," Perry interrupted. His purple eyes glanced over at Inigo's t-shirt. "Sweet, we're both on Team Fantasy!" The two fist-bumped and smiled.

"And, get this, Inigo," Alexis added. "Via and I are on the same team for once!" Excitedly, she pointed back-and-forth at the blue t-shirts she and her sister were wearing. "Team Sci-Fi!"

"I'm also on their team," the inkling with the double bun commented. "I like fantasy, but I like sci-fi, just a _little_ more."

"So… it turned into boys vs. girls?" the indigo-eyed inkling asked, eyeing everyone else's shirts. Roy and Yuri were both wearing the lime tees that marked them as part of Team Fantasy.

"I guess." Bonnie simply shrugged at the question.

"Well, I guess we're ready," Yuri announced. "Let's go!"

"Yeah!" The Rainbow Squids made their way into the Deca Tower and walked over to the control panel leading to the room storing their weapons. After a few inputs, the paneling near it slid open, revealing the stairs that led down to the storage room. Everyone dashed down there, grabbed their weapons, and dashed back up, the floor closing once more as soon as Perry got to the top of the stairs. Inigo threw his Carbon Roller over his shoulders and started following Roy towards one of the elevators.

The boys rested inside, waiting for someone to arrive. About a minute later, some inklings wearing lime tees walked into the elevator. One of them, a short-haired inkling with fair skin and SV925 circle shades covering her eyes gasped upon seeing who the group was up again.

"Inigo!" exclaimed Fable. "You're on Team Fantasy, too?"

"…Yeah, I like it more," he responded. "Everything seems so much better in a fantasy world." The inklings that had followed Fable inside started mumbling in agreement.

"Ya know her?" Perry asked, sitting on his Sloshing Machine.

The inkling with the ponytail nodded. "Via set us up on a date one time."

"Oh? Where?" Yuri asked.

"Coral Rings!" Fable replied.

"That's in the Reef, right?" the purple-eyed inkling asked for clarification.

"Right," Inigo confirmed.

The elevator door closed behind them, and he heard it start to descend. Roy simply leaned against the wall, holding his Luna Blaster in one hand. Yuri and Perry were having idle chat, while Inigo remained silent. Fable had moved up next to him, their arms touching, making him feel a little uncomfortable. _Please, let the grate open up soon…_

"Hey, did you squids hear about the octoling that came into school a couple days ago?" a feminine voice soon piped up. Looking over at the speaker, he saw a girl with skin the color of coffee. She styled her hair into a double bun and had lime eyes that matched the t-shirt. Alongside the Splatfest tee, she wore a black FishFry bandana and athletic arrows. She wielded a Range Blaster.

"Which one?" another girl with sand-colored skin asked. She wielded a Bamboozler 14 Mk I. "East, Central, or West? There's three high schools in Inkopolis."

"West Inkopolis High School," the first girl clarified. "The story goes that two juniors and a freshman brought some shades to the engineering teacher. As they were talking about it, an octoling suddenly appeared and accused one of them of infiltrating an Octarian base. They denied it, and the octoling threatened to splat them."

"_Splat_ them?!" Roy suddenly cried out in disbelief, and then his expression turned to anger. "I can't believe it! Why, if they were my friends being threatened, I would have splatted that octopus right where they stand!"

"Are you sure that was an octoling?" Inigo then inquired.

"Oh, I'm sure. Witness reports say that she outright said she was an octoling," she answered. "So, afterwards, the octoling got angry she didn't have a weapon and just left. Everyone near where it happened thought it was scary—and that she looked scary, too."

"Geez," a male voice then sneered. Looking over at the corner of the room, a pale-skinned inkling with a buzzcut and the Tenta Brella was standing with the tip of the canopy touching the floor. He adjusted the 18K Aviators he wore on his face before saying, "West Inkopolis High School must have poor security."

"And where do _you_ go?" Roy sassed.

"Uh… East Inkopolis High School," he replied. "Why?"

"Oh, just checking. Maybe they have bad security, too."

"_Yooo!_" his friends cheered at his comeback.

"Alright, ya got me," the inkling with the buzzcut said. "That was a good roast."

A few moments later, the floor below than began to slide open, revealing the grate. Quickly was it ready for the squids to slip inside it and travel to their battlegrounds. _I wonder where we'll go today._ He hoped to see the new Shifty Station, but he wouldn't mind battling on a familiar stage, too. When he spawned into the stage, he found the spawn point resting on top of some pavement, complete with road markings and tactile pads. A highway and some buildings circled around the stage. Inigo smiled. This was the Shifty Station.

Almost immediately, his team began firing their weapons. He was momentarily confused when his Carbon Roller laid down a path of orange ink instead of lime green ink, but then he remembered he was fighting other members of Team Fantasy. Nonetheless, he started running down the ramp, towards the central area. Immediately, he spotted an orange sponge, so he started swinging his roller up and down to enlarge it. He climbed up to the top of it and hid, but then the sponge suddenly shrunk, revealing his squid form as he fell to compensate for the shrinkage. A beam of indigo ink shot straight towards him, knocking him off the sponge.

"Your name's Inigo, right?" asked the girl with the Bamboozler. She walked up to him and pointed the beam straight at his chest. "Kinda ironic the other team's color is indigo. Since your name sounds like the color and all."

"Well, I won't be splatted by my color today." He brought up the lightweight roller and crashed it down onto the inkling, splatting her. The resulting explosion inflated the sponge ever-so-slightly, so he let it absorb more of his team's ink by hitting it with his weapon more. Once it obtained its full size, he started running around, trying to find the source of a newly-activated inkrail. Once he found the starting bulb, he hopped into it and swam up to the central platform, a metal box with glass paneling on the sides. There, he hid once more.

The inkling with the ponytail had to flee once indigo targets began marking him. He leaped off of the box as missiles came crashing down on it. Some of the resulting ink had splattered onto his back, but he quickly shook it off as he continued inking turf.

Perry was hurling vortexes of ink from his Sloshing Machine. "If they got Tenta Missiles that fast, then we better hurry up," he commented as Inigo passed the sponge he stood on. The pale-skinned boy's purple eyes scanned the area. "Hmm…" He threw an autobomb to the ground, where it simply exploded. He shook his head. "Move on, Inigo. Nothin's here."

"Then it's time to push onwards," suggested a new voice. He looked over his shoulder to see Yuri emerging from the ink. He started charging up his Heavy Splatling Deco, walking towards the enemy side, where indigo sponges resided. Inigo decided to ink a path for him to walk through while he was charging, and moments later, the spiky-haired inkling began firing the splatling. Suddenly, the boy with the Tenta Brella emerged and put up the durable canopy. The inkling with the ponytail made a path around him in case Yuri's splatling failed. A few seconds later, the splatling stopped firing, and the canopy launched, allowing the enemy to slip away. However, Inigo was waiting right for him, and he brought up his Carbon Roller to allow for a satisfying splat. The two friends gave each other a fist bump and started to venture deep into the enemy territory.

Soon enough, bullets started raining down on them. The two split directions, trying to dodge them. However, Inigo soon heard the dark-skinned boy scream, giving him the audial cue that he had been taken down. He cursed under his breath and started swimming back towards his side of the map. When he was surrounded by orange sponges again, he emerged from the ink and held out his roller like a sword.

"Hey, Inigo!" Fable called, emerging from an indigo path that had followed him. She started charging up a Mini Splatling. "Having fun?"

"Y-Yeah," he stuttered, throwing out an autobomb as he backed up against a wall he presumed to be uninkable. The short-haired inkling let go of the trigger, firing a barrage of small bullets at him. In a panic, Inigo pulled out a packed canister containing Ink Storm and threw it towards the ground, sending a cloud of orange ink up into the air. A little later, Fable managed to splat him, but the bomb exploded soon after, splatting her as well. In the meantime, Ink Storm rained down orange droplets onto the land, expanding the orange sponges and shrinking the indigo ones.

When Inigo respawned, he decided to go a different way this time. Running to the left side inside of the right, he pumped up the sponge nearest to spawn and climbed up on it, surveying the turf at its current state. He noticed Roy and the girl with the Rapid Blaster battling it out down below, near one of the inkrails. The girl placed something near the ink rail and swam off towards the tower on her side of the map. The inkling with hair swept to the side activated his special, forming a ball around him, and ran towards her. The mine she placed down exploded as soon as the Baller came in contact with it, launching him forward and placing a black marker around him. With that, Inigo decided to super-jump to his friend.

When he landed, the Baller inksploded, creating massive puddle of orange ink surrounding them. The girl he had been fighting got caught in the edges of the explosion, injuring her. She opened her mouth to speak, but the fair-skinned boy swooped in with his roller to finish the job.

"And that's teamwork for you," Inigo declared, wiping some sweat off his forehead.

"A pretty fresh combo, too," a new voice added. Perry walked up to them, Sloshing Machine in hand. "Baller-to-Carbon, that's what I'll call it."

"As fresh as that was, we gotta ink more turf," Roy then directed. "That battle just distracted me from doing so."

Some indigo markers appeared around the three inklings. "Run!" the boy with the ponytail cried, and they all jumped out of the way from the incoming mass of missiles. Though they managed to evade that attack, Inigo saw the boy with the buzzcut pull out a bubble wand in the corner of his eye, and he soon swung it to create three massive bubbles. As they surrounded the group, they found themselves with their backs up against each other. They began attacking them in order to pop them, though it would be to no avail as members of the enemy team all put their effort into popping one bubble, which splatted all three of the boys.

When they respawned, they began running down to the middle once more. "Yuri's still out there," the purple-eyed inkling noted. "He's gonna get splatted if they all attack him." He dove into the ink, the ripples marking his location as he swam faster and faster.

"Wait," Inigo said, catching up to his friend. He emerged, his feet skidding across the floor as he slowed down, and he looked over at the fair-skinned boy.

"…What?"

"He can always respawn; we don't need to back him up." He put a hand on Perry's shoulder. "Let's just focus on inking. This is a turf war after all."

"Ugh, fine." The boy with spiky bangs walked over to the puddles of indigo ink edging their own turf and began covering them up with his slosher.

Inigo smiled. He'd always loved his talent to solve problems and come up with new ideas in a snap. Signing the Rainbow Squids up to be recognized as an official team? His idea. Letting Asher, and later Alexis, join in on the fun when they decided to battle each other? His idea. Now, his solution regarding Yuri being alone, up against the enemy team, was to ignore him and keep inking turf. As long as they kept inking, they would win. That's the goal in a Splatfest and all turf wars, right? Even if this battle didn't count, he still wanted to claim victory in this match.

It did not take long for Inigo to encounter the other team once more. He activated an inkrail that was on a crate with uninkable walls and jumped over to it to swim to the other side. From there, the girl with the Rapid Blaster was waiting for him, shooting exploding rings in his direction. He hesitated for a little bit, wondering if he should retreat or jump in and fight. Ultimately, he retreated, as one shot managed to get a direct hit on him. He returned to the bulb of the inkrail and swam towards the towers in the very center.

Somehow, Yuri was still standing, happily firing away with his Heavy Splatling Deco. He pulled out a bubble wand and started happily swinging it back and forth to create three large bubbles. He charged it up again and began shooting at them, filling them up with ink until they popped.

"And that's the power of Bubble Blower!" he cheered. He looked over his shoulder to see the fair-skinned inkling and gave a thumbs up. Inigo returned it and started running towards the indigo sponges past their tower. From on top of the opposite tower, he noticed the girl with coffee-colored skin had climbed up on top of it and pulled out a bomb launcher. Splat bombs started raining down onto the battlefield, and Yuri set up a splash wall in front of them for protection. Inigo simply ran away.

_So that's how he was able to survive,_ the boy deduced. _He relied on his splash walls._ Behind a wall he hid, taking cover from the splat bombs. He soon heard Yuri's cry of defeat, and from there, he knew he had to act soon. Once he heard the last bomb blow up, he emerged from behind the wall and charged towards the tower, flicking ink from his Carbon Roller towards the top of it. After a few tries, he still heard nothing. He turned around only to receive a blast of ink to the face. Spots floated around his vision as he was stunned from the shot, and then he was splatted.

As soon as he stepped off the spawn point, he saw Perry equip the Sting Ray, and soon, he fired a narrow beam that pierced through the air. In response, he super-jumped to him and entered the fray once more. Fable leaped out at them, but she ended up getting caught in the beam, splatting her. Then, Inigo threw out an autobomb, just in case someone else was hiding. It started waddling behind the tower they were next to, so he slowly followed it to investigate.

Behind the tower was the girl with the Bamboozler 14 Mk I. When the autobomb started to expand, she swam away, allowing it to explode without any casualties. From there, she backed up against the indigo sponge, charging up a shot and firing straight at Inigo. He hissed as the ink beam struck his chest, so in response, he brought up his roller and did a vertical swing at her. She dodged and fired once more, this one grazing his arm. Inigo then threw another autobomb at her and charged towards her, leaping into the air. She aimed towards the air, but she became careless enough to forget about the autobomb. Before he finished his swing, it exploded, splatting the sand-skinned girl.

He submerged into the ink to recover, and then he continued inking the area around him. He reckoned there was not much time left in the match, so he had to act, fast. He put his Carbon Roller to the ground and started running around, leaving a wide trail of ink wherever he went. A few seconds later, his hair started glowing orange, and he was able to unleash Ink Storm once more. Chucking the canister towards the enemy side, it burst open to release a cloud that would rain ink all over the battlefield. The boy with the Tenta Brella appeared around the curve, releasing the canopy in Inigo's direction before running away from the orange cloud hanging above him. Inigo himself swung around the large canopy, watching it crash into the crate behind him and disappear.

Roy then super-jumped to him and started swimming deeper into the enemy side, towards Ink Storm. Now that the enemy team was trapped, they could effectively claim a victory. For the rest of the match, Inigo spent his time near the enemy spawn point, splatting people as soon as he saw them. A little later, a whistle blew, and the inkling with the ponytail brought up his weapon. He looked behind him to see the map covered in orange and smiled.

"Good job, team," he said as the rest of the Rainbow Squids present joined him. They sat down up against the wall, staring at the other team while they hung out on the ledge of the uppermost platform. The boy with the buzzcut in particular grimaced at them, the faint shape of his eyes narrowing underneath his sunglasses.

"Good job indeed!" Fable cheered, walking over to them with a smile on her face. "Especially you, Inigo!" She patted him on the head, embarrassing the fair-skinned inkling a little bit.

"Thanks," he returned, pulling the collar of his shirt over his mouth.

"We should battle again some time, y'know," the short-haired inkling remarked. "Maybe a 1v1, or on the same team! Oh! Or a Salmon Run!"

"Count me in if you do a Salmon Run!" Yuri added.

"Yeah, and I kinda wanna see where this thing goes," Perry snickered. "Inigo and Fable, sittin' in a tree, K-"

"We're not dating!" Inigo snapped.

"I think she does like you, though," Roy whispered in his ear.

"Me too, but I don't feel the same," he replied softly.

"So… what do ya think?" Fable asked.

"Can I have your number, then?" the boy with the ponytail questioned in response. "We'll discuss it over text."

She smiled. "Of course!" She pulled out a deep violet phone and pulled up a phone number on the screen. "Just copy that down."

Inigo pulled out his phone as well and entered her number in as a new contact. "Done."

"Great!" Immediately, Fable's nose was in her phone, and she started walking back to her team, though she bumped into a wall along the way.

After some silence, the purple-eyed inkling then spoke, "Does anyone think that whole octoling story's a sham?"

"I don't think it's a sham, Perry," Yuri pointed out. He got out his phone as well and opened up Squidsagram, scrolling down to photos of a funny-looking inkling with dark hair, shades, and some kind of armor on. "Some people I follow snapped pictures of this girl, asking who she was." He tapped on one of them, pulling up the comments section. Scrolling through them, he pointed out one of them. "This one says she's an octoling. The original poster replied, 'Are you sure?', and they went on to tell the story."

Perry scanned the page and shook his head. "That doesn't prove anythin'."

"Believe what you want, Perry," Roy grumbled. "I still think that's real."

"Whatever."

A few moments later, Judd and L'il Judd arrived, positioning themselves on the crate between the two teams. They scanned the stage before doing their signature dance. Judd struck out an orange flag, causing the smaller cat to fall on his back.

"Yes! We won!" the dark-skinned boy exclaimed, hugging his Heavy Splatling Deco.

"Of course we did," Inigo asserted. "Do you see how much turf we covered?"

"And that's why we're the best," Roy boasted.

Afterwards, all the inklings super-jumped out of the Shifty Station, back towards the lobby. They only skimmed over their results; they weren't too interested in seeing how well they did at the moment. They stepped out of the room, back into the main lobby. Now, they searched for the girls, seeing if they had returned from their match. Later, they saw Alexis, Octavia, and Bonnie exiting a room, weapons in hand. They ran towards them and greeted them.

"How did your match go?" Bonnie asked.

"We won," Yuri replied.

"…Though it was against other members of Team Fantasy, so it didn't count," Roy added grudgingly.

"We still had fun, though," Inigo finished.

"We also won our match," Octavia said. "Though unlike you, we didn't fight members of our team."

"Now that we're all together, I've been wanting to ask you guys something," Alexis suddenly chimed in. Everyone turned their attention on the short inkling, and with a nervous smile, she asked, "D-Do you guys wanna explore the old plaza sometime?"

"Why?" was the red-eyed inkling's immediate response. "No one's there."

"Can't you go yourself?" followed her older sister. "You're old enough; no one's stopping you."

"Yeah, but you guys know the place better than I do. What if I get lost?" she argued.

"Look, what do you want to do there?" the spiky-haired inkling then queried.

"Just… look around. Nothing special," Alexis replied.

"Well, I'll go," Perry offered. "I've always wanted to play the old arcade cabinets again."

The short-haired girl smiled. "Anyone else wanna go?" Everyone shook their heads. "…OK, then. It'll just be you and me, Perry."

"If that's the case, I guess I'll see you some time."

"But we see each other every day."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I meant for plaza-explorin'."

"In the meantime, let's keep battling, and may the best team win," Inigo concluded.

They put their hands together and then threw them into the air. "Right!"

"Now, let's go, and have the Splatfest of a lifetime!"

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! Hoped you like this chapter. The next chapter is a very special one, so stay tuned for next week! Branchwing, out!**


	28. Mysteries of the Deep

_Perry's PoV_

Alexis and Perry wandered through the narrow streets of Inkopolis, the area becoming less and less crowded as they neared Inkopolis Plaza. Some birds were picking at the litter that lined the streets, flying away once they heard the two inklings' footsteps. Though the plaza was not far from the square, it felt like an eternity to get there. Sights he hadn't seen since the beginning of the year came into view. The Inkopolis Tower rose above the rest of the buildings, a train sped by on the railway behind the tower, and the statues situated on top of Booyah Base and the studio just barely poke out of the horizon. Perry shivered from the breeze, giving the area an overall ghastly feel to it.

When they made their first steps into Inkopolis Plaza, they were met with total emptiness. Not a single soul was in sight, not even near the tower. Walking towards the center of the plaza, the purple-haired inkling saw the familiar faces of the fox and the tanuki staring down at them with their ceramic beady eyes. The giant screen that once displayed Inkopolis News still flashed with recent advertisements, but there was no one to look at them. Background music still played from the speakers behind them, but there was no one to listen to it. The doors to the tower were still open, but there was no one to enter them. The shops in Booyah Base were closed shut, but either way, there was no one to buy anything.

Alexis started walking over to a manhole near Inkopolis Tower, where a creepy old man used to peek out of every once in a while. Perry anticipated him to pop out of the hole suddenly, but even he was gone.

"You sure you wanna go there?" the pale-skinned inkling called, catching up with the younger one. "A creepy old man lives in there, and I don't want him doing… creepy things to you. Why not play an old game or something?"

"He's not there now, is he?" she teased. She opened it up. "C'mon, it'll only be for a little bit."

He crossed his arms and sighed. "Oh, alright." She jumped into it, and he followed her in, closing the manhole behind them,

When they emerged out on the other side, the inklings were met with fresh air in a vast valley, closed off by mountains with strange rock formations. Immediately to the right was a small, outdated shack decorated with various trinkets. Its most notable feature was the blue board on the front of it, which was covered in maps and photographs related to Octarians. Next to it was a broken snowglobe, as if something had burst out of it. On the opposite side of the stretch of land was a floating tablet etched with white lettering. A squid was imprinted on the very top of it.

Alexis walked over to the shack and glanced up at the corner of it. "Hey…" She put a finger on a picture depicting a familiar figure.

Perry walked over to join her. "Is that… the Squid Sisters?"

"I guess so," she replied and then chuckled. "I guess even creepy old men like their music."

"No, he probably wants to do creepy things to them, too," he argued.

"Can we look inside?" the orange-haired girl then asked.

"…Sure, but be quick."

The two inklings pushed the blue board out of the way and revealed a mass of books and zapfish dolls wearing a cap. Laid on top of the books were two sets of clothes. One was the tattered clothes he had usually seen the old man wear, complete with the cap found on top of the dolls. The other set of clothing, on the other hand, were rather fresh in the eyes of the inklings, only leading Perry to become bewildered. The clothing in question were a short beanie, a lime easy-stripe shirt, and punk blacks, an outfit the purple-haired inkling knew he's seen someone wear before. The unfortunate part is, he can't remember _who_.

"Hey, look at this!" Alexis picked up a picture in the shack and displayed its front to her friend. It depicted the Squid Sisters, alongside a third inkling girl with long green hair and fair skin, standing around the old man, who had a cake in front of him. All of them were wearing party hats. Scribbled in black marker was a message reading, 'Happy Birthday Gramps!'.

"Wait…" He snatched the photo and studied it closer. "Are ya saying that creepy old man is the Squid Sister's grandpa?!" He huffed. "He's just crazy, then."

"So… where is he, anyways?"

Perry scanned the area before turning back to the girl with a shrug. "I dunno. Maybe he ran off naked somewhere."

"But whose clothes are these?" She picked up the lime easy-stripe shirt and held it to her chest. "Has to be someone our age."

"And that's another mystery." He walked out of the shack and onto the pavement, towards a kettle exposed to the sunlight. "C'mon. Let's go explore this place more."

"Shouldn't we bring a weapon?" Alexis suggested.

"Where would we find a weapon?"

"We could break into the old Ammo Knights. There's aught to be somethin' in there."

"True."

With that agreement, the two friends travelled back to Inkopolis Plaza through the entrance grate. Once they popped out into the ghost town once more, they bolted towards Ammo Knights and smashed the door open. Perry rummaged through the storage of the old shop until he found an older version of the Sloshing Machine. Picking it up, he smiled as the memory of when he first bought his main weapon flooded into his head, all those days ago.

He was 14, and Ammo Knights had just announced the arrival of a brand new main weapon in the Slosher class—the Sloshing Machine. Quickly becoming a fanatic of the bucket weapon the day the original Slosher released, he, like many other inklings, flooded into the weapon shop to buy one. Though, Perry first wanted to try out the Sloshing Machine—he didn't want to make a wasteful investment! So, when he was in the front of the line, he was brought to the Shooting Range to try his luck on the target dummies. Within the first swing, he fell in love. He watched in wonder as the vortex of ink hurled itself toward the dummy, drenching it in his purple ink. Immediately, he bought it, and he used it over and over again, and he still uses it to this very day.

Alexis, on the other hand, struggled to find a weapon. She dug through stacks upon stacks of weapons, but she never made a choice.

"What are you lookin' for?" he asked, itching to go explore the mysterious valley more.

"I can't find any dualies," she complained.

He facepalmed and gave an airy laugh. "Yeah, about that... Dualies didn't really make their big hit until this past summer. This store never stocked them."

"Seriously?!" she cried. "I could have just picked up a Splattershot and just left if I'd known!"

He scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. But I didn't know you didn't know that. But, oh well. We got all the time in the world to make up for it."

Grumbling, she picked up an old version of the Splattershot and walked out of Ammo Knights, back towards the manhole that led to the valley. Perry followed her back, and they continued their adventure through the place. When they arrived at the first kettle, they stared into each other's eyes and gave determined nods before diving into it in the form of a squid.

A few moments later, they spawned into a place surrounded by buildings. The platform they were on was narrow, and at the end of it, there was a swirling circle colored lime green. The two inklings changed their ink colors to match the pad before stepping into, which launched them onto a wider platform covered in lime green ink. They swam through it and climbed up a ramp, leading them to a smaller circular pad that lit up when they stepped on it. From there, they continued onward to another launchpad at the end of the raised section of pavement.

When they arrived at the next area, Alexis asked, "Don't you think it's a little quiet?"

Perry nodded. "Too quiet…" They walked up to the walls in the middle of the new platform, the tops of it eroded off. It was decorated with stickers, but that was all. Inside the walls was another launchpad, where they promptly launched off to a sloped area, which had a red mural depicting an eel past the ground. They moved on to the next area. From the starting platform, it dropped off to a lower platform that had a ditch up ahead. The launchpad was on the larger side, though, so they continued without any further inspection. They leaped over the Firefin advertisement and arrived onto the next glowing pad to see towers decorated with identical logos up ahead. They swam through the lime ink present and moved on to the next area.

Walking along the pavement, Perry had to admit that he was disappointed. There was just nothing to see in this shadow of a strange world, as if someone had come by previously and obliterated the civilians to nothingness. They moved from one area to the next, seeing the same emptiness in each. He sighed as they arrived at the final area, where something glowing rested on top of a glass tower. They walked over to the launchpad located on one of the corners and super-jumped up to the top, where they were met with the zapfish doll found in the shack resting on top of a pedestal. A golden barrier surrounded it.

"So, this is the end?" Perry remarked. "This place was kinda lame, to be honest." The two inklings broke the barrier surrounding it, and the older inkling snatched the doll from it. He winked and struck a pose with the doll in hand, causing Alexis to snicker a little bit.

"Alright, alright, that was a good one. Let's get out of here," she said.

Perry put the doll back in place, and the barrier reformed around it. Perry and Alexis proceeded to super-jump out of the base, and soon the breeze met their faces as they climbed out of the kettle. Though the purple-eyed inkling considered going back, Alexis continued to walk down the sidewalk towards another kettle.

"You still wanna check out this place?" he called, puzzled.

"Hey, there has to be something interesting! We can't let our adventures go to waste!" she argued.

"And what do you suggest we do? Go into each one until we find something?"

"No." She walked over to another kettle and put her ear to it. "We can listen." After a few seconds, she stopped kneeling and shook her head. "This one's bad." She ran over to another one and did the same thing. "And this one…" She jumped down to the ground and walked up to a larger kettle that was situated on top of a purple pillow. "Same thing here."

Something in the light caught Perry's eye, and his gaze drifted over to a deactivated inkrail. "An inkrail?" he mused. He jumped down to join Alexis. "Maybe that'll lead somewhere."

She gasped. "You're right!" With the Splattershot in hand, she shot a few bullets of ink at it, letting it light up green and form a long trail to somewhere. They hopped in and swam until they reached the end of the inkrail, which led to an open area resembling a skatepark. On the highest hill was yet another giant kettle. Unlike the first area, Perry could faintly hear the hum of electricity here, when everything was quiet.

"Wait," the short-haired inkling murmured, walking up to the ramp leading up the hill. A few moments later, she was inking the hill and climbing up it. _I trust you're not leading me to a death trap_. He followed her to the top of the hill, where she was listening to the kettle. A few moments later, horror struck her features, and she concluded, "Something's down there."

"What?! You're serious?" Alexis nodded, and the pale-skinned boy put his ear down to the top of the kettle to listen as well. Though the sound was faint, he heard mechanical whirring from inside. His eyes widened upon the realization that the younger inkling was correct. "Oh my cod, you're right." Almost immediately after, he smirked and asked, "Wanna go check it out?"

"Couldn't we die down there?"

"Hey, you wanted to go here in the first place."

"Fair." Her eyes drifted over to the kettle. "If anything, we can stop it."

"Then, are you ready?"

"I am."

"Then, let's go."

The two inklings slipped into the giant kettle and founds themselves in a dimly lit area. Their ink changed into a golden color as they spawned in on a wooden dock. The sky was dotted with artificial lights, and giant truss beams towered above them. Small lights illuminated a sandy arena, and in the middle of it was a bronze cylinder covered in kelp. It was surrounded by a magenta moat, and Perry swore he saw something plop into it. Gripping their weapons, they super-jumped down to the battlefield to get a closer look. Wooden planks were everywhere, and several ramps with tribal designs edged the lighter earth. The moat seemed to be filled in a metal basin, and the cylinder was decorated with stickers. They took a few steps closer, anticipating something to happen.

"Is someone there?" Perry suddenly broke the tense silence. He stared at the object in the middle. It had to be on, but it looked like something had to activate it.

Suddenly, something leaped out of the moat and dove towards them. Startled, Alexis and Perry jumped and stepped back. The shape began to become more humanoid, and soon, it was in the shape of a boy, kneeling to the ground with one hand brushing the sandy. In his other hand was a silver remote with a red button in the middle of it. He stood up and cracked his neck, opening green eyes and giving a toothy smirk. He had magenta hair styled into a mohawk, with the longest tentacle curling just above his nose. He wore the Octoling Armor and Octoling Boots, though black fingerless gloves covered fair-skinned hands as well. Most notably, he had a notch on the top of his left ear.

With a snicker, he held the remote out in front of him and said, "I have wondered when an inkling would come here." He pressed the button. "Now it has come."

Electricity suddenly crackled off of the bronze object behind him, and the bronze object began spinning until dark lifeless eyes faced them. A faucet was in between them, and below it were mechanical legs fitted with blue tennis shoes. The eyes suddenly beamed to life, glowing yellow with horizontal pupils. It lifted up to reveal a kelp-covered body underneath. Suction cups filled the holes in it, and then it gave a mechanical roar.

"The dreaded Octonozzle!" the stranger announced.

"The Octonozzle?" Perry mused. "…Hey, I think we learned about it in school—"

"Shut up!" He pulled out a splat bomb and threw it at them, causing the two to scatter in a panic. "Splat the inklings!" he then commanded the old weapon before super-jumping up to the top of it. He grabbed some of the seaweed on its side and pulled it up, allowing him to steady himself on top of the machine. Within a few seconds, Octonozzle spewed out a giant ball of magenta ink, sending it rolling towards them. Though they quickly got out of the way, the robot proceeded to create an even larger ball, kicking it to split it into a line of five smaller balls.

Perry tried hurling ink at the globs, but they seemed to cut right through his golden ink. He gasped in disbelief, standing dumbfounded at the balls as they barreled towards him. They knocked him down, and he groaned as pain settled in from the ink running him over. The short-haired inkling quickly ran over to him and dragged him behind one of the ramps.

"Get up!" Alexis cried, patting his shoulders. "We're both leaving here alive tonight!"

He slowly rose to his feet and peeked over the ramp to see what the Octonozzle would do next. It proceeded to kick more ink in their direction, covering the barrier with the sticky ink. He met eyes with the stranger and quickly shot down back behind the ramp.

"Come out! Give me a show!" he demanded.

"What's with this guy?" the purple-eyed boy whispered to the younger inkling. "He wants to splat us, and for no reason, too."

"I guess he lives here, so we're technically trespassing…" Alexis noted before shaking her head. "But enough of that. We need to figure out a way to take out this guy."

"Octonozzle or the guy?"

"Octonozzle. We have to attack its weak points in order to defeat it."

"Do you see any?"

"Those suction cups… They have to be there for a reason."

"So, we take them all out, and maybe something will happen."

"Yeah, that's the plan."

"K, let's go!" he leaped out from behind the ramp and started hurling ink at the front suction cup. Octonozzle proceeded to spit out another line of ink balls, but this time, Perry was prepared. He stepped out of the way and continued the assault. The machine had a tendency to spin around, making it hard to take out one particular spot in one go. Eventually, the two dealt enough damage to one to make it pop, though it did not faze Octonozzle.

Grinning, the stranger cackled, "Now the fun will begin!"

Once all the suction cups were popped, the small pipes collapsed and the head began spinning around as it was stunned. A magenta tentacle then popped out of the top of it, stretching as it emerged. The green-eyed boy was knocked off of Octonozzle, crashing into the moat below with a large splash. Perry pulled out a splat bomb and threw it onto the top of it, while Alexis inked its side and climbed up it to finish the tentacle off. When it burst, a stream of magenta ink gushed out of its head, and the two inklings super-jumped away from it.

"Is it beat? Did we win?" Perry asked.

His question was soon answered as a new tentacle popped out of the top, with no signs of damage on it whatsoever. It submerged inside Octonozzle again, causing its eyes to light up once more. It spun up to reveal its sides once more, complete with suction cups filling the holes once more. Its pupils narrowed and it roared, clearing the ink from the arena.

"And… now we run again."

The machine's first attack was to spew a ginormous magenta ball and kick it into an arch of smaller globs, covering a larger area. A few of them ran into Alexis, knocking her down. She looked over her shoulder and rolled out of the way before another ink ball could slam into her. When it passed, Perry dashed over to the bronze-skinned inkling and grabbed her arm, bringing her behind the ramp. She glared at him once he sat down, not amused.

"I can handle myself," she snapped.

"We still gotta be careful." Perry smiled. "Like you said, we're both leaving this place alive. No squid left behind!"

She was silent for a few moments before standing up and saying, "You're right. No squid left behind!" She ran past the ramp again and started shooting at the suction cups, eventually bursting a few of them. Octonozzle continued attacking more frequently, so they were constantly on their toes. Oddly enough, there was no sign of the stranger whatsoever. That wasn't important, though, as they currently had a much bigger problem on their hands.

Once all the suction cups were taken out, the machine malfunctioned and spun around dazed once more. Before they could climb up and take out the tentacle, the stranger suddenly burst out of the moat once more and started rapidly throwing splat bombs at them.

"How can he throw that many bombs?!" the bronze-skinned inkling cried out, bewildered. "You'd have to have a really big ink tank for that, and he's not even wearing one!"

"You do not know what the Bomb Rush is?" the boy perplexed as he continued throwing bombs. "Is it not a special the inklings use?"

"It got banned a while back, bud," Perry explained bluntly. "Usin' _any_ of the old special weapons while battling would get you banned, too. But luckily…" The pale-skinned inkling activated his special and starting chucking splat bombs at him. "…No one's watchin' but us."

He growled and leaped towards the inkling, knocking him down to the ground. "Alexis! Go blow up the tentacle!" he called as the stranger gripped his hoodie and pulled it towards him. Perry was forced to look at his ferocious green eyes and feel his hot breath on his face.

"I have been waiting for a long to cross paths with an inkling," he hissed. "For years I have listened to lectures upon lectures on how dangerous they are; how they beat the Octarians in the Great Turf War that _they _won, and _we_ lost. And now that my soul has been freed, I can finally get my chance. I have seen how dangerous the inklings are, and now I can experience it for myself." He gripped Perry's shirt tighter. "You have not given the Octonozzle that I have improved a real fight. Do you think I can let you defeat it so easily, when the fun has to start?"

"Where did you get the notion that inklings are dangerous? We just want to have fun!" Perry argued. "Sendin' a giant weapon that was used a hundred years ago after us isn't fun! We just wanted to check out what was down here, and now we're in a life-or-death situation!"

"That is where you are wrong!" he roared. In the background, the boy heard the geyser of ink squirt out the top of Octonozzle once more, followed by Alexis's cheers as she super-jumped away. "Two years have passed since the dreaded Agent 3 decimated the Octarian army. Two years have passed since the dreaded Agent 3 defeated DJ Octavio, leader of the Octarians." He gave an unsettling grin. "Two years have passed since the Calamari Inkantation set us free! We are free to do what we wish, without DJ Octavio commanding us what to do!"

"'Agent 3'? What are you even talkin' about? And what does Calamari Inkantation have to do with all of this?"

The octoling choked up on his words, his expression changing to one of disbelief. Perry heard the Octonozzle shoot some more ink balls in the background, and he knew he had to act fast. While the boy's guard was down, the inkling with the spiky bangs raised a leg up and kicked his crotch, pushing him off of him. The stranger let out a cry of pain as he curled up into a ball. As the machine regenerated its suction cups once more and let out a mechanical roar to clear the ink on the field, Perry rushed past the whimpering figure and started attacking the suction cups once more.

Alexis looked between the two boys before asking the inkling, "What did you do?"

"Oh, don't worry, he'll be fine." The purple-eyed boy stuck out his tongue and winked. "That trick doesn't see species."

She sighed. "Let's just finish this guy."

Looking over at Octonozzle, it proceeded to send five more ink balls at them. They jumped over them and started attacking once more. This phase was a little trickier, as the attacks were almost continuous with the machine's snappy head. Every now and then, Perry looked over at the stranger, who still lied on the ground helpless. He certainly didn't want to splat him, but he couldn't just ignore him, either. When the final suction cup fell, and the Octonozzle broke down again, revealing the tentacle once more.

With one last determined nod, the two inklings climbed up to the top and destroyed the tentacle once and for all. They super-jumped away once magenta ink started gushing out again, and they watched as sparks flew off it as it tried regenerating the tentacle once more. Its golden eyes rolled around as it stretched up towards the sky and started to swell. Its eyes bulged as yellow rays emitted from its metallic joints, and then it exploded in a mass of golden ink. Orange orbs spilled across the ink-covered battlefield, while the stranger was nowhere to be seen.

"Booyah!" Alexis cheered. "We did it! We stopped the Octonozzle!"

"Booyah! Now let's get out of here."

Turning into squids, the two shot out of the dark world and reemerged to face a brilliant sunset. Smiling, they returned to the ink rail they arrived from and swam into it, soon arriving at the area containing the exit to this valley. They walked up the sidewalk and back towards the manhole that led them here in the first place. They travelled back to Inkopolis Plaza through it, and back they were in the ghost town. They returned the weapons to the old Ammo Knights and repaired the hole they made.

"Can we take a train back?" the bronze-skinned inkling asked. "I'm tired of walking."

"Yeah." He smiled. "We deserve it."

They walked to the Plaza Station, where a bored crustacean was surprised to see people in front of him. Perry paid for their tickets and boarded the train, where they took a seat and relaxed. The pale-skinned boy, who had changed his ink color back to purple, pulled out his phone for the first time in a few hours to be met with several messages asking where they've been. He replied that they were on their way back now, adding he had a lot of stories to tell them when they get back. Roy initially expressed disbelief upon hearing this, but Perry assured him he'll like it.

When the train arrived at Inkopolis Square, the two inklings burst out of their seats and started running back towards the Deca Tower. _Finally! I'm back!_ He missed seeing the sights that had become a new home for him, from the Galleria to Inkopolis Studio to the Crust Bucket. Of course, inklings spotted the square, happily chatting away about the freshest trends or simply banter.

Back near the Crust Bucket were the Rainbow Squids. "Guys! We're back!" he shouted, waving his arms around as he ran up to them.

"Perry!" they cheered. He fist-bumped with them and took his seat.

"Alexis!" Octavia greeted, pulling her sister into a hug. "I was so worried!"

"Via, y'know I can handle myself," she whined.

"For once, I gotta agree," the purple-haired boy remarked. "With what we got into, we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her quick thinking."

"Why? What happened?" Bonnie asked. Perry and Alexis recounted their adventure, causing some surprised reactions from the rest of the group.

"You fought one of the Great Octoweapons and didn't get splatted?!" Inigo exclaimed. "That's amazing!"

"And there was an octoling there, too?" the girl with the double bun marveled.

"Now I wish I went with you…" Roy grumbled.

"Me too—Wait, what's that?!" the wavy-haired inkling started, pointing to Perry's waist once her tone became frantic.

"What's what?" Perry asked. He looked down at himself and saw the faintest traces of green slithering around him. He shrieked and transformed between a squid and kid rapidly, trying to get it off of him.

"Hold still!" Yuri demanded, getting up from his chair and grabbing something on his back. He pulled it off, and the pale-skinned boy turned around to see what his friend had retrieved. In his hands was the mantle of an octopus, tentacles dangling in the air. It then transformed back into the octoling from the valley, who displayed a poker face.

"You!" Alexis yelled, pointing to him. She put a finger on his nose, smushing it, and demanded, "Why are you here?"

"I followed you," he replied. "I am not letting you get away with the ruins of my show."

"Woah, can't we be friends?" Yuri asked him. "For starters… what's your name?"

"Giovanni Briareus," the octoling replied.

The dark-skinned inkling gave an awkward smile. "It's a start."

"I am not here to be your friend," Giovanni snapped.

At that moment, the intro for Off the Hook played, causing everyone to turned to the TV. "Y'all know what time it is!" Pearl announced.

"It's Off the Hook, coming at you live from Inkopolis Square!" Marina finished.

"Marina Ida…?" the green-haired boy muttered.

"Yeah, that's Marina Ida, part of Off the Hook, Gio—mind if I call ya that?" Perry explained.

"Hmm…" He turned into an octopus to escape Yuri's grasp and transformed back as he started to walk to the studio. "I will be back."

As Off the Hook gave news on the current stages, Octavia said, "Geez, what's his problem?"

"I guess octolings are grumpy," the pale-skinned inkling joked.

All of the Rainbow Squids laughed along, and once the news was over, everyone was back in their seats, chatting about the newest trends. And though today was certainly a most interesting day, there was one thing everyone could agree on. This would not be the last they see of Giovanni Briareus.

* * *

**A/N: Here it is! I really hope you guys like this chapter, because I've been waiting to write this one for months! Now, I have an announcement. The Rainbow Squids will be going on hiatus! Yep, that's right. From now until the beginning of next year, there will be no new chapters posted. This is mainly because I really need to take a break from writing these chapters weekly x.x. On the other hand, it allows me to focus on my other stories that I would like to finish soon. Likewise, this chapter marks the end of "Season 1" of The Rainbow Squids, and the next chapter will be the start of "Season 2". There will be a hiatus after each season, so that's something to keep in mind. Thank you for supporting this story, and the Rainbow Squids and I will see you in 2020! Branchwing, out!**


	29. Bonus Story 1: The Stranger

**Summary: Giovanni goes to visit Marina.**

* * *

_Giovanni's PoV_

The green-haired octoling walked towards the studio, curiosity brimming on his face. Why would one of the Octarians' most elite engineers get reduced to a disc jockey? He didn't get it. Marina Ida had so much potential, but she decided to waste it. _But then again…_ They worked in the same unit, despite never interacting due to differing ranks. He recalled seeing her at the grand concert, where DJ Octavio fought against the dreaded Agent 3. She was free from their old oppressive society now—but why not take advantage of her skills?

As he walked past the glass window displaying the inside of the studio, he saw Marina and the other member of Off the Hook, an inkling with short cream hair tipped with pink and pale skin, chatting. He glared at the inkling briefly before moving on to the entrance. Even if the physical pain brought on by the fight against the intruders had faded, he'll never forget the humiliation he felt as a result. _I'll bet she'll backstab her one day,_ he thought as his training crept into his mind.

Giovanni shook his head, stepping inside the building. _No_. He clenched a gloved fist. _I'm here now_. As much as he wanted to fight another inkling, he couldn't. He was in Inkopolis, surrounded by their kind and culture. The purple-haired boy's statement about fun echoed in his head. He snorted. They just thought of battles like a game. After hearing that, how could anyone take them seriously?

Two inkling guards stood in front of the entrance into the recording room, meeting eyes with the octoling. "Show me your pass," demanded one of them.

"What do you mean by a pass?" Giovanni proceeded to ask.

"Yeah, a pass, Y'know…" The other one pulled a golden card out of his pocket depicting a logo. "This. You do know you need one to see Pearl and Marina, right?" The boy shook his head.

"He must be new to Inkopolis," whispered the first guard to the other. "He doesn't seem very fresh."

"I can be 'the fresh'," the octoling protested. Despite snooping on the New Squidbeak Splatoon for over a year, he never grasped the concept of the term.

"You might want to start by getting new clothes," recommended the second guard, putting a brown finger on the silver chestplate Giovanni wore. "Octoleet gear has been out of style for at least a year now."

"Anyways," started the first inkling. The second one had straightened. "You can't get in without a pass."

"Why can I not get in without a pass?" the green-haired boy then prodded.

"Against the rules, bud," the second guard replied. "Sorry."

"But-"

"The rules are rules," said the first guard. "I'll have to escort you out if you don't leave."

The door suddenly unlocked behind them, and the three of them were now focused on it. The pale-skinned idol with starry eyes opened it up and now stood in the doorway, arms crossed. "What's going on out here?" she demanded.

"Sorry, Pearl," apologized the first guard, a nervous smile dancing along her face. "This guy won't leave. We were about to lead him outside," she explained, gesturing to Giovanni.

"Wait…" piped in a new voice. Marina Ida towered over her coworker, so it was not difficult for her at all to join the conversation. Though, he could have sworn she was taller. _Did she shrink? Or did I grow?_ "He looks familiar," she commented.

"I am familiar. I know you." The octoling boy couldn't help but smile. On the inside, he was ecstatic. _She noticed me! She knows who I am!_

The dark-skinned octoling adjusted her headphones. "You do, now?" she asked gingerly. "Then…" Her teal eyes darted around for a few moments before returning her attention to Giovanni. "Let's talk… elsewhere." Pearl whispered something to her, but Marina responded back in the same volume. Nodding, she walked past the line of inklings behind the fair-skinned octoling. "Follow me," she uttered softly in the Octarian language, looking over her shoulder to face him. Giovanni nodded and trailed behind her.

They arrived in an empty recording booth, the controls thoroughly polished. Marina pulled up chairs for the two of them, and she sat down in one, crossing her legs and fidgeting with her thumbs. The boy with the mohawk sat down in the other chair, confident.

"So, um…" The disc jockey looked off to the side. "Hi."

"Hi," he greeted back. "…Do you remember me?"

"No…?" She adjusted her headphones again. "I mean, you must have been at the show. I can tell your soul's been touched by the Calamari Inkantation."

"I was." He pounded a fist into his hand. "It's something I'll never forget. But that's not all."

"Oh?"

"I was placed into the same unit as you a month before. We were different ranks, but I'm certain that we saw each other from time to time."

"Hmm…" She paused briefly, making the boy a little nervous. "Actually… I do remember seeing a guy with a notch in his ear." Marina sighed. "I'm sorry. We all look so similar with goggles on."

_It's a start._ "Do you know my name?" The idol shook her head. His lips puckered at the answer. Marina Ida was the one person he thought he could talk to, but as it turns out, she had little-to-no recollection of him. But who was he kidding? Back when they served DJ Octavio, Giovanni had occupied one of the lowest ranks an octoling could possibly have, while Marina occupied one of the highest. The reality that they did not really know each other was inevitable.

"I'm sorry… um… you can tell me your name, if you want," Marina offered, extending a hand.

He took the hand and shook it. "Giovanni," he replied, smirking. "Giovanni Briareus." When they let go, the green-haired octoling was quick to ask more questions. "Why did you become a DJ? You could have used your skills elsewhere."

"Well… I have to owe it to Pearlie."

"The other girl? What does she have to do with anything?"

"She's the one who inspired me to go into music. I wouldn't be here in Inkopolis if it wasn't for her, and I can't imagine my life without her."

He snorted. "You really care about her, huh."

"Yeah…" she said, smiling. "Well… do you want to try out a turf war?"

"A turf war? Like, with the inklings?" Marina nodded. "Heck yeah I do!" He stood up from his seat, boasting a confident pose. His stance relaxed when he then remembered, "…But I only have bombs."

"I'm sure Sheldon could give you an Octo Shot Replica. He probably has some laying around."

"I guess that works." He walked towards the door and opened it. "What are you waiting for? Let's go."

"R-right." The idol rose from her chair and followed Giovanni out of the recording booth. When they arrived at the entrance, some fans talking to the pale-haired inkling noticed her partner and started cheering Marina's name. The dark-skinned octoling simply smiled and waved.

"Hey, Pearl," she started in Inkling. "Do you want to do a turf war in a bit?"

"Yeah," the other idol responded. "Lemme get my dualies."

"We're going to Ammo Knights first," Marina noted. Pointing to the green-haired octoling, she explained, "He needs a weapon. So… do you wanna come?"

"Ugh, I don't wanna listen to Sheldon talk about weapons all day..." she whined. "Sorry Marina; I'll wait for you at the tower."

"OK." The tall idol started walking out of the studio, gesturing for Giovanni to follow. He promptly followed, keeping a good posture. "It's just across the street," she told him in Octarian.

"Convenient." As they walked into Ammo Knights, the green-haired boy marveled at the weapons in the display case. They all seemed so polished and clean... Since he wasn't qualified to become an elite soldier, capable of guarding the domes in Octo Valley, he received minimal weapon training. He particularly took a liking to splat bombs for their versatility, even having several cans of Bomb Rush on hand at all time. Since he defected, however, he had to keep his use of specials to a minimum.

Inside the shop was a horseshoe crab, polishing some weapons. "Sheldon!" Marina called in Inkling.

The crab turned around, the size of his eyes amplified by the goggles he wore. "Marina?" He ran up to the two octolings and bowed. "Fancy seeing you here! What do you need today?"

"Does he normally act like this?" Giovanni whispered to her in their native tongue. The idol nodded.

"Do you have any Octo Shot Replicas, by any chance?" she asked.

"I do!" he cheerfully replied. "Not many, but I do!" Sheldon ran to the back of the shop, and a minute later, he came out with the requested weapon, its empty tank glistening in the light. "It's a little odd you're coming to me for one; Judd is usually the one who has them." The fair-skinned octoling leaned in for a better listen, curious. "But anyways—the Octo Shot Replica, as its name suggests, was modelled after the weapons octolings use! It's a lot like the Tentatek Splattershot, with splat bombs and the Inkjet special. It's perfect for pushing towards the front lines and expanding your team's turf! It's a definite recommend from me!"

"Well." Marina pulled some coins out of her pocket and gave to the horseshoe crab, who in return gave the shooter to her. "Here you go. Have a nice day!"

"You too, Marina."

Once the octolings left Ammo Knights, the idol gave the shooter to Giovanni. "He wouldn't be too happy if I let him know it was for you."

"Why?" the green-haired boy asked.

"The shopkeepers at the Galleria have pretty high standards. They won't sell anything to you if you're not fresh enough," she explained. "And obviously, you're not very fresh right now."

"I can be plenty fresh," he protested, crossing his arms. "I just need experience."

"And you'll get it through turf wars. C'mon, let's go."

He huffed and followed Marina into the tower. There were a few benches outside the entrance into the lobby, where some inklings sat. At the sight of the dark-skinned octoling, they began calling her name and begging for autographs. She simply waved at them, denying any autographs. Once inside, she pulled out a brella and searched for Pearl. They were quick to find the short idol, who was spinning some dualies.

"Well, that didn't take as long as I thought," remarked Pearl.

"Same," she agreed.

"Anyways, ya ready?" Marina nodded. "Aight! Let's go!"

As expected, fans followed them wherever Off the Hook went. As a result, many inklings tried to crowd in the elevator they entered. Giovanni caught a few angry glares directed towards him, their eyes like needles. He dismissed it as jealously, but it did not quell the discomfort he felt. A voice at the back of his head nagged him, reminding him that he was an octoling, the enemy of the inkling. But he had to ignore it. Nothing was going to ruin his first turf war with the inklings!

The lucky few that did manage to join the same room as Off the Hook enthused about their freshness, with one even begging for an autograph. They happily complied, both idols signing the inkling girl's shooter. She squealed with glee and proceeded to talk about it with the other inklings. Suddenly, the elevator stopped moving, and a grate opened underneath them with a hiss.

_This is it!_ he thought, expectant. Despite his uneasiness, he couldn't help but feel giddy. Transforming into an octopus, he slipped through the grate to his next destination. A few moments later, he appeared on a bright green spawn point with the two idols, plus an additional squid. They transformed into their kid forms, and Giovanni got a chance to scan the battlefield. It was a large, open area—likely a plaza—with a bridge in the center of it.

Suddenly, everyone on his team began firing their weapons, spreading the green ink all across the pavement. At first, he stared at them, dumbfounded, but soon, he began to do the same. He held down the trigger of the Octo Shot Replica, and ink began squirting from the barrel. Slowly he paced around the upper area, making sure each and every spot was covered. When there was no more turf to cover, he transformed and swam through the ink to catch up with the others at the bridge.

"Where is this?" he asked in Inkling.

"Yo, you don't know the Reef?!" Pearl exclaimed, surprised. She dodge-rolled out of the way of a girl's incoming roller and promptly splatted her. "Guess ya really did just move here."

"Yes," he confirmed.

"No wonder he's not fresh," muttered a voice behind him.

He looked over his shoulder to see the girl who had her weapon signed before the battle. "I hear you," he snapped.

She gave a nervous chuckle. "...But you'll get fresher with each passing day."

The boy eyed her shooter, which she used to quickly take down another approaching enemy. "What is that weapon?" Giovanni asked.

"A .52 Gal," the girl replied. "It's nothing special, really."

Before he could question more about it, he was quickly smushed by something behind him, splatting him. Even after he respawned, he was still dazed. He rubbed his head and started swimming back to the bridge. It seemed abandoned for the most part, so he decided to explore the other side. As he walked there, he fired the Octo Shot Replica. A smile spread across his face as the turf progressively became greener with his team's ink. _This is so much fun!_

Cocky, he walked up a ramp leading to the enemy base. There appeared to be no one there... until he was pierced with a beam of pink ink. Respawning once more, he decided to take a side route that had yet to be covered in ink. He took his time as he strolled down the lane, admiring the scenery. The warm rays beamed against his fair skin, the soft breeze rustled the trees' leaves, the shadows of skyscrapers stretched over the plaza. If you forgo the chaos of battle, it was actually rather peaceful.

He had to admit—Inkopolis looked so much better than the rocky valley or the underground domes he once lived in. Yet, he was already feeling homesick for Octo Valley. Technology gave him a sense of familiarity, and inkling tech was nothing like the Octarians'. And life was definitely more carefree in the city. Octarian society was strict and rigid, never-changing. Even after he abandoned the army, he remained alert and on-edge. With the new-and-improved Octonozzle being destroyed, he thought that maybe he could finally relax in Inkopolis.

Giovanni arrived at an open space to witness Marina and another inkling battle. The enemy fired her blaster, which had a sticker on it, at the dark-skinned octoling, who quickly revealed the canopy of her brella to block it. The opponent simply dodged the blasts from the brella. It appeared that the two were in a stalemate in their battle.

"I help!" he shouted, jumping down to the battlefield. Marina gasped in surprise, and with the loss in focus, her canopy fired, and she was left without a shield. The enemy inkling raised an eyebrow, perplexed. Taking advantage of her confusion, Giovanni aimed at her chest, and he fired. Before he could splat her, she fired a shot of her blaster back. The direct hit instantly splatted him, pain blooming in his abdomen. As his ghost floated back to the spawn point, he watched the canopy ram into the inkling, splatting her as well.

Once he respawned, the octoling boy began running back to the battlefield. _A match is three minutes, right?_ He had watched countless practice sessions the octolings conducted, even participating in a few himself, which included mock turf wars. _How much longer do I have?_ He might as well make the best of it. He noticed the grassy lot underneath the bridge and headed down towards it. Like he expected, it was covered in ink. Pink ink. He scoffed and started covering it back up with his weapon. Once he finished, he turned around just to see a girl pushing her roller forward, creating a path of ink behind her. He had the idea to cower in hopes it would spark some kind of pity. She still steamrolled him.

_Why do I keep dying?_ he asked himself, annoyed. This wasn't his first turf war ever, but true to their reputation as monsters, the inklings had remarkable skill. _Especially the roller girl._

Marina spawned next to him, and she asked in Octarian, "Hey! How it's goin'?"

"Great... kind of," he replied. "The inklings are just too good." He crossed his arms and stepped off the spawn point.

"Have you tried using your sub? Or your special?"

"No... Am I supposed to?"

She nodded. "I'm pretty sure you have splat bombs and an Inkjet. You know how to use them, right?"

"Yeah." A pink marker suddenly appeared around the two octolings, and Marina grabbed the back of Giovanni's undershirt and pulled him back onto the spawn point. He yelped and turned around to scowl at her.

"Hey, we gotta have each other's backs, right?" she defended.

Missiles rained down on them, exploding on contact with the barrier that surrounded them. Pink splatters of ink surrounded the circle. "...I'll be seeing you." He gestured goodbye, covered the splatters back up, and headed back down to the central area.

He tried summoning his Inkjet, to no avail. _I can't use my Bomb Rush cans,_ he reminded himself. _And I don't have any for Inkjet. How does this work...?_ After covering up a decent amount of turf, his hair started to glow green.

"Dude, use your special!" the girl who wielded the .52 Gal recommended from somewhere.

He tried activating the Inkjet once more, and this time, it succeeded. Suddenly he was propelled into the air with a gun in his hands. Now at eye level with the bridge, he flew around, shooting aimlessly. His green eyes continuously scanned the arena, looking for any enemy inklings. He saw a pink-haired inkling boy place down a radar of some sort before continuing on to ink the ground with his shooter. Giovanni aimed at him and fired. With one perfect shot, the boy splatted, causing the octoling to pump a fist. The Inkjet started beeping, and soon he was flying back to the spot where he activated it.

When he landed, he found himself stepping in enemy ink. He threw a splat bomb behind him and trudged through the ink with heavy steps. The moment his team's ink was in reach, he jumped towards it and swam away. Once he thought he was far away from his landing spot, he scanned the area to find nothing significant. He let out a sigh of relief. At last, he was safe. But for how much longer? He threw a bomb out in front of him, and it exploded, covering no turf whatsoever. Hesitantly, he took a few steps back out into the opening. Towards the enemy base, Giovanni noticed Pearl dancing around a shaky beam, shooting at an unknown aggressor. _Maybe I can help._

He swam towards the pale-skinned idol, shooting at whatever turf needs covering up. As soon as he got in range, he popped out of the ink and began shooting... at nothing. He stopped, looking around for Pearl's opponent. Soon, he noticed an inkling boy with bangs, smirking as he aimed his charger at Giovanni.

"Oh." The boy fired, and the octoling exploded into a pile of pink ink. He scolded himself for not reacting. When he respawned, he simply stood there, thinking. It appeared that their team was winning, but it was still possible for the opposing team to win. Out of habit, Giovanni ran a hand through his mohawk. He did a little bounce and charged back towards the bridge, aiming his Octo Shot Replica. When he set foot on it, the same girl with the roller suddenly jumped from the ink and slammed her roller down on him.

He respawned once more, and as soon as he took a step off the spawn point, a whistle blew, and everyone stopped dead in their tracks. Green eyes searched the battlefield. _Is it over?_ He felt his heart pumping in his chest. Despite his disappointing performance, the battle was invigorating in some way. Suddenly, he was beaming. He loved it. He wanted to keep battling, all day long. Suddenly, it didn't matter if he in Inkopolis. Suddenly, it didn't matter that he was with the enemy. All he wanted to do was to keep battling, and nothing would stop him.

On the bridge, two cats, one bigger than the other, appeared from somewhere. They did a little dance before the smaller one struck out a pink flag, while the bigger one fell over.

"Man, I thought we had that one," he heard Pearl complain.

He wiped the dumb smile off of his face and walked up to the two idols, who were standing next to reach other. "Win?" Giovanni asked them.

Marina shook her head. "I'm sorry... but we lost."

"What?!" he cried out.

"I know, that's what I was thinkin'," the short girl noted. "Gotta admit, it was really close. Hey, at least we weren't toast!"

Giovanni crossed his arms and frowned. "I think I am the reason you had lost."

"What? No! Ya did great out there!" she tried to assure him.

"I was splatting too much. Disappointing."

"Believe it or not, you actually helped us in a way," Marina tried comforting him.

"Help you?"

"You distracted the girl with the Blaster long enough for me to splat her," the dark-skinned idol explained.

"And runnin' in there distracted the guy with the Splat Charger, so I could splat him, just like that," Pearl added.

"I had splatted," he protested.

The idols looked at each other and shrugged. "Whatever floats your boat," the idol with short hair commented.

"Pardon?"

Before any more answers could be given, they all transformed into cephalopods and super-jumped somewhere. Suddenly, he was in the dimly-lit lobby with the other people in the battle, a green squid pattern scrolling across the walls. A screen displaying the map was right in front of them. It appeared to be pretty even. He drifted down to the percentages to learn that his team had lost by 0.1%.

"Wow, that really _was_ close," remarked the girl wielding the .52 Gal.

As the screen displayed further statistics, Marina started whispering to Giovanni in Octarian. "What did you think?"

"Aside from losing..." he whispered back, "it was great! I loved every bit of it." He pumped a fist. "I'll get good enough to beat the inklings one day, I just know it."

Marina simply smiled and straightened. "Well, it looks we have to make our leave, now," she said in Inkling.

"Gotta get back to the studio, y'know!" Pearl added.

"And remember..." added the octoling girl.

"Don't get cooked... Stay off the hook!" they concluded, striking some poses. The duo waved as they left the room.

Later, more inklings entered the room, ready for battle. Giovanni twirled his Octo Shot Replica around before getting a solid grip on it. _I won't lose this time._

* * *

About an hour later, Giovanni finally emerged from the elevator, victorious. "Woo!" he cheered. After Off the Hook had left, he actually managed to get a pretty good winning streak. Now, he was feeling pretty fresh. The girl with the .52 Gal, whose name was Audrey, even commented on how fresh was becoming before she left the room. It was a fact he was glad to hear. _Now for some better clothes._

He walked out of the tower, looking around for some shops. He noticed Ammo Knights, and next to it were some other stores. But then, he had a thought.

_I've seen Agent 3 wear casual clothes before,_ he recalled. The last time he saw her was over a month ago, wearing the clothes she wore whenever she traversed the Octarian domes. It was also then that she dropped her cellphone—and Giovanni took it. He pulled a green squid-shaped phone out of his pocket at that thought. A picture depicting a tower in Inkopolis, the Great Zapfish curled around it, appeared when he turned it on, alongside a multitude of messages. _Maybe she left her clothes in that shack._

He turned around, seeing another tower, behind the one in the square, far off in the distance. Turning into an octopus, he super-jumped over there, a green streak of ink following him. He had a rough landing, scraping himself against the pavement. He recognized this place as the one the two intruders arrived in when they climbed out of the grate leading to Octo Valley. He rose to his feet and looked at the tower in front of him. He pulled out Agent 3's phone again and glanced between it and the actual structure. It was the same tower... yet there was no Great Zapfish.

_How odd._ Now was not the time for pondering. He walked over to the grate and climbed into it. Moments later, he was back in the familiar valley, the stone walls surrounding him as he stepped onto grass. With a better look at the entrance from Inkopolis, he noticed that the snow globe once containing DJ Octavio had shattered. The giant octopus was nowhere to be found.

_He stole the Great Zapfish again, didn't he,_ he grumbled silently. _But whatever; not my problem. I bet there's someone doing something about it. Like the dreaded Agent 3 or the Squid Sisters._ Giovanni approached the shack and walked into it. Inside was nothing spectacular—books, zapfish dolls, a makeshift bed, et cetera. A few pictures were hung up on the walls. He spotted tattered garments on top of one pile of books, and some fresh clothes on another. It was clear that one belonged to the old inkling DJ Octavio had once captured—he appeared to be named Cap'n Cuttlefish—and one belonged to Agent 3.

Giovanni put on Agent 3's beanie and smirked. He tried putting on her shirt and shoes as well, only to find that they were too small for him. It was no bother—he would just have to buy clothes his size back in Inkopolis. Turf wars gave him quite a bit of money...

With the situation in Octo Valley sorted out, he returned to Inkopolis Square and proceeded to buy said clothes. When he walked out of the fitting room in Shella Fresh, he brushed his hair aside and put a hand on his hip. Quietly, he muttered to himself in Octarian.

"Ha. The inklings won't know what's coming to them."

* * *

**A/N: I'm back! ...With a bonus story. I originally didn't plan a bonus story, but then I got the idea of having a chapter from Gio's perspective. I also wanted to explain a few things in the first chapter of Season 2, mainly one thing that you'll find out soon. (It shouldn't be that hard to guess what.) I hope you guys like this chapter - it serves as a nice tie-in with the last chapter and the next. Speaking of the next chapter, I am happy to announce the FIRST THREE CHAPTERS of Season 2 will premiere this weekend! They're all part of an arc, that's why. In case you're confused, Chapter 30 comes out January 3rd, Chapter 31 comes out January 4th, and Chapter 32 comes out January 5th! How about it! With the exception of Friday's chapter, they'll come out at the usual time. Have a great 2020, and Branchwing, out!**


	30. Deca Tournament

_Roy's PoV_

A few days before the end of November, jellyfish everywhere started handing out fliers to inklings of all shapes and sizes, each promoting the same thing—the first ever Deca Tournament, a contest where teams of four battle it out through ranked battles, and the ultimate winner will get a special prize. As these fliers became more and more abundant, Inkopolis's youth started to wonder if the tournament was legitimate. Not many people bothered signing up for it until a special news segment came on the jumbotron plastered on the front of Deca Tower.

"December 5th, don't miss it!" Pearl exclaimed. "Yo, the first annual Deca Tournament is in town!"

"And Off the Hook will be commentating on it," Marina added.

"So don't miss it, ya hear?"

"Yeah, don't miss it."

Octavia pulled out the crumbled-up flier out of a bag she had and unfolded it, examining the details. "It really is real," she muttered.

"Then we gotta join!" Yuri chimed. "Off the Hook's gonna be there." He winked at Perry. "We don't wanna miss it, right?"

A faint blush bloomed on the purple-haired inkling's face, and he scratched the back of his head, looking off to the side and repeating, "Right."

"How are we gonna organize the teams, though?" Bonnie brought up. "There's seven of us, and each team has to have four people in it. There's not enough to make two even teams."

"We could invite Asher to join us," Inigo suggested.

"But Asher hasn't joined us since in forever," Via argued. "He'd be rusty."

"And he hasn't even done any turf wars recently, either," Roy noted.

"It still wouldn't hurt asking," the fair-skinned inkling reasoned. "No one would turn down a chance to battle!"

"Unless you're old," Perry snickered.

"Well, old people can't battle anymore," the beige-skinned girl countered. "They've been run dry."

"…Just let me have my moment, OK?" he grumbled.

"Well, Asher's not old. He's like, 21 or something," Yuri pointed out. "I'd say we ask him."

"Alright… let's go," the red-haired inkling finally conceded.

The Rainbow Squids got up from their table and started traveling to Geneva's apartment. Some time later, they all packed into the elevator leading upstairs. Though the mass of inklings garnered some strange looks from the apartment complex's residents, their trip went rather smoothly as they all excitedly sped towards the apartment their friend once resided in.

Roy took the initiative and knocked on the door, and a few seconds later, a green-haired inkling opened the door, his eyes widening once he saw the teenage inkling. The ponytail he normally wore was currently hidden by a Takoroka mesh.

"Woah, Roy, you've gotten tall!" Asher exclaimed. He stood on the tips of his toes to try to match his height, but he was still just a little bit short. "Very tall, in fact." The red-haired boy smirked at the remark. One advantage to his height was that he could brag about it. Geneva's brother looked pass him and then said, "You're all here, in fact."

"Yeah, that's because we have something to ask you," the blue-haired girl chimed in.

"Which is…?"

"So, you see, there's a tournament in town," Bonnie started to explain, squeezing in next to her tall friend.

"The Deca Tournament! The very first one, that is!" Yuri interrupted.

"And Off the Hook will be commentating it!" Perry added on excitedly. "The freshest idols there makes this contest the freshest of all!"

"A tournament…" Asher murmured. "Sounds fun."

"We have to sign up in teams of four, and with Geneva gone, there's only seven of us, so it won't be even without another member," Bonnie then continued.

"So, our point is…" Octavia proceeded with their request.

"Will you be our final member? Just this time?" Inigo finished.

"Are you sure you want me? I haven't battled in a year." The green-haired man scratched his head. "And I know how much ink battles have changed since then."

"The tournament doesn't start for another week," the indigo-haired boy then pointed out. "You can practice then."

"Well, I'd look out-of-place, too," Asher argued. "Most squids battling are 14! I'm several years older than them!"

"Oh, c'mon; don't let that stop you," Yuri protested. "You're never too old to have a battle!"

Asher sighed. "Alright, I'll join you."

_Yes!_ Roy cheered silently. "Do you still have a weapon?"

"I have my Splattershot Jr., yes," he replied.

"Then let's go test it out."

"OK." Asher disappeared inside the apartment momentarily. When he reemerged into the doorway, he was holding an empty Splattershot Jr. in his hands, and he now wore shoes: punk whites, in fact. Nodding, all the inklings left the apartment complex and headed down to Sheldon's Shooting Range, back in Inkopolis Square. Soon, the young adult was holding a shooter full of ink in his hands, standing around as the Rainbow Squids, with their ink colors now matching that of Asher's, watched. Hesitantly, he pressed the trigger and fired at the target dummy until it exploded. The teenagers clapped at his achievement.

"Try activating your special," Inigo suggested.

"Don't I need to cover more turf, though?" the green-haired inkling pointed out.

"Yeah, that's what he meant," Roy replied.

Asher proceeded to ink much of the entrance hallway before his hair started to glow. "Alright, watch this." He walked up to the teenagers, and suddenly, a bubble-like barrier surrounded him. It was passed on to the other Rainbow Squids, who were pushed around thanks to the Bubbler's properties. The inkling with hair swept to the side glared at him, unamused from him using the special weapon.

"You know they banned Bubbler, right?" Bonnie spoke up after the initial shock.

"They did?"

"Yeah, they did. You'll get banned if you use it in the tournament," Octavia confirmed.

"So, what do I do now? Get a new Splattershot Jr.?"

"You can trade it in to get the updated version," the girl with the double bun informed. "It works with literally any weapon—even the ones whose new versions aren't in store yet."

"Fresh." The Bubbler's timer wore out, and the barriers around everyone disappeared. Asher proceeded to call for Sheldon, and the horseshoe crab came running over to the group of inklings. He handed the Splattershot Jr. to him and asked, "Can I get a new one?" The green-haired inkling smiled. "Please?"

"Sure thing! Just wait one moment!" Sheldon ran off back to his shop, and a few minutes later, he came with an empty, but brighter-looking Splattershot Jr. "Here it is! The new-and-improved Splattershot Jr.! Instead of Bubbler, it comes with Ink Armor, which you can use to support your team or make an aggressive push towards the enemy!"

"Alright." Asher picked up the shooter, and instantly it became filled with green ink. He ran over to the other section of the shooting range to cover it with ink. The Rainbow Squids followed him and watched as it quickly became covered in green. Once his hair glowed, he yelled, "Ink Armor!", and a green mist surrounded all the inklings. Quickly, they became covered in the hardened ink, their fierce eyes illuminated. The young adult proceeded to chuckle. "Reminds me of some old human thing."

"I dunno, I think it makes us look pretty intimidating," Inigo remarked.

"Nah, we look fresh in this, squids," Perry then mused. "I'd love to have this all day."

The Ink Armor wore off, and then the green-haired inkling started walking towards the exit of the shooting range. "Alright, I'm gonna go do a few turf wars." He waved goodbye. "Don't forget to sign me up!"

"That's the spirit!" Roy encouraged. At last, their problem regarding an eight member was solved.

* * *

On December 5th, hundreds of inklings flocked to Deca Wings, a park owned by the same people who own the Deca Tower. Located not far from the tower and shaped like a ray, it became a popular place to walk, hang out, or simply just relax following the renovations to Inkopolis Square. Notoriously, it is home to tons of pigeons that like to land on inklings' hair and bite them. The fact that people often bring food here does not help. Roy himself had only been Deca Wings a few times, though it had been primarily with his baskfishball teammates.

It was also not an ideal place for turf wars. It only contained one spawn point in the very middle of the park, and nature overtook much of the area. Despite the park rangers' best efforts, weeds still infested the sidewalks sometimes. Currently, a stage was set up behind the spawn point, where Off the Hook was singing. Several screens were set up behind the duo, and the central, largest one currently displayed a close-up of them. Spectators poured into the bleachers, while all the teams were directed to their own special bleacher.

As Roy sat down in his designated spot, he spotted a few familiar faces. "The Splatteruplets and that dualie team are both here," he whispered to the group. He also spotted some of his baskfishball teammates sitting together. He knew they formed a team of their own, called 'Poppin' Baskets', but none of them mentioned joining the tournament, not to him at least. He felt a little upset at this fact, but it was nothing to lose his temper about.

The last group to arrive featured a team of funny-looking inklings, but then he recognized one of the members. _Giovanni! These must be octolings, then!_ The green-haired octoling was not wearing the Octoling soldier uniform he wore when he first met him. Instead, he wore a green short beanie, a lime easy stripe shirt, and punk blacks, a familiar outfit. His team sat in the row in front of him, causing him to groan.

"Is that Gio?" Perry asked.

The aforementioned octoling looked over his shoulder to glare at the purple-haired inkling. "My name is Giovanni," he grumbled.

"Ya really don't like nicknames, do ya?" he teased.

"A nickname is not a name," the octoling argued.

"Is so!"

He sighed. "This is my team, the team that will defeat you," he introduced the three other octolings with him. "Their names are Oscar, Yvonne, and Iris." He twirled around the Octo Shot in his hands, confident.

"I am Oscar," said one octoling with an orange afro. He wore a black FishFry bandana, a Chili Octo Aloha shirt, and Annaki tigers. He had bronze skin like Octavia and Alexis, and though his afro made him seem taller, he seemed to be the same height as Giovanni in reality. He wielded a normal Inkbrush. "It is a pleasure to be meeting you."

"Greetings! My name is Yvonne," greeted another octoling with yellow pigtails, her fingers forming the shape of a heart. On the top of her head was a camping hat, around her body was an eggplant mountain coat, and on her feet were sunny climbing shoes. Compared to her teammates, she was considerably shorter than then, only being a little taller than Alexis. Interestingly, she had dark skin like Yuri, and she also wielded a splatling, hers being the Hydra Splatling.

"At last, my name is Iris," greeted the final octoling, who had poufy, indigo hair and fair skin, much like Inigo. Wrapped around her head was the squash headband, and she also wore a Takoroka galatic tye dye tee and violet trainers. She appeared to be Perry's height, and she wielded the Krak-On Splat Roller. "We win," she wished, her brow becoming furrowed. "No losing."

"Nice to meet you all!" Yuri greeted, waving. None of them waved back, instead giving him blank stares. He let out a nervous chuckle in response.

Before any more words could be spoken, Pearl let out a loud, "_Ahem_," tapping on the microphone. Everyone turned their attention to the idol with pink-tipped hair. "Y'all ready for this?" The entire crowd started to cheer. "Good, 'cause the first ever Deca Tournament is here!"

"Yeah, it's here right here, right now," Marina added, adjusting her headphone. "Already, Deca Tournament has broken records, with a total of 56 teams participating!" The crowd cheered even more. "To start, there will be 24 matches. Some teams will be sitting out until the second round." She snapped her fingers, and a huge bracket appeared on the screen behind the duo, displaying all the matchups for the first round. Reading it, Roy learned that the Warm Rainbow Squids, consisting of himself, Octavia, Yuri, and Alexis, would be facing off against 'Poppin' Baskets' first. He smiled. Knowing the team, he was pretty confident they would win.

"And after that, it'll be cut down to sixteen matches next round," Pearl continued. "Then eight, then four, then two, and then the final match to see who gets the cup once and for all!"

"If you want to watch, we provided screens here that rotate between matches every-so-often."

"Or, you can jump onto a specific launchpad and watch one match live. Booyah!"

"We'll let the teams go their specific matches first, and then you guys can jump in and watch."

"With that all out of the way…" Pearl turned to face the bleachers containing every inkling, and by extension, every octoling, participating. "The first round's mode is Tower Control! Let's go!" She did a loud clap, and 24 launch pads appeared nearby. The Rainbow Squids separated and headed to their respective launchpads. Roy looked over his shoulder to see the other team not far behind. He smiled and raised his arm to wave, but Octavia grabbed it, whispering to him that they had to go. He sighed and turned into a squid, super-jumping to their match.

The red-haired inkling sat in the darkness for a bit as he awaited his emergence from the spawn point. In the meantime, he starting thinking about what he could do. If all the stages were available for this tournament, then that meant he could be playing on any stage. Tower Control was his favorite mode—he loved jumping out at squids on the tower and quickly disposing of them with one shot of the Luna Blaster. However, some stages, like Snapper Canal, made it trickier to do so due to barriers like tight spaces and water.

A little later, Roy found himself on the spawn point and transformed into a kid, his eyes looking down upon Musselforge Fitness. In the distance, he could see the tower on top of the most prominent hill of the map. A few seconds afterwards, his team started shooting deep blue ink towards it. Via in particular had put the bristles of her Octobrush Nouveau down to the ground, and she started running. The rest of the team swam in the narrow ink trail she created, following her.

When they arrived at the tower, the tan-skinned inkling emerged and started firing his blaster at the tower. He noticed a lime squid jump behind the pillar, and the track turned green as it started moving down the hill. The aforementioned squid transformed back into a boy with spiky hair and stuck out a tongue at Roy, patting his Custom Jet Squelcher.

"Hey," he greeted, smiling. This boy was Liam Thresher, a baskfishball player in the grade below him. Fittingly, he wore a home B-ball jersey and a jogging headband.

"Hey," the inkling with hair swept to the side greeted. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"We wanted to surprise you." Before Roy could reply, he swiftly received a blast to the back, splatting him. _And what a surprise that was._

When he respawned, he immediately super-jumped to Yuri, who was firing his Heavy Splatling Deco at the tower from one of the vantage points. He noticed Liam popping out of the ink on the top of the tower, who promptly started to fire at the dark-skinned inkling. Both Rainbow Squids dove behind the box to avoid getting hit.

"I'll take over from here," Roy whispered to his friend, twirling his Luna Blaster. _This is my favorite part._ He dove into the ink and swam closer. As the tower approached the box, the tan-skinned inkling ambushed the boys on the tower and fired a shot of his blaster before putting a splat bomb on the tower to finish the job. Another member of Poppin' Baskets, Carter Saw, managed to avoid the blast of the bomb, but soon he was pelted with blue ink, splatting him. He quickly realized which teammate splatted Carter—Alexis. She climbed up onto the tower, changing the track to blue and moving it away from the checkpoint. Roy decided to join her.

"Nice," he complemented, patting her on the head. She made a face at him, but said nothing more as they both hid in the ink. Octavia soon joined them on the tower, making it a little crowded. He assumed Yuri was not far behind. If they kept up this steady pace, it would be golden. They would have a KO as quickly as he can splat people with his Luna Blaster.

As they rode the tower, Carter soon appeared near the first checkpoint, Clash Blaster in hand. Once it was in-range, the boy with the ponytail began firing it, its rapid bursts catching the team off-guard. In response, Roy threw another splat bomb at his feet, causing Carter to stop his barrage and retreat momentarily. Wiping some green ink off his jacket sleeve, he dove after the opponent and easily splatted him once more. It was then a new figure appeared from the shadowy alley—Sebastian "Seb" Squal, a senior and one of the star players of the baskfishball team. Armed with the .96 Gal Deco, he threw out a splash wall and quickly followed with bullets. Already injured from Carter's attack, it only took one hit before Roy exploded into a puddle of lime ink.

Once again, the red-eyed inkling super-jumped to his yellow-eyed friend, watching the track turn the enemy's green as he flew by. With his splatling ready, Yuri stood on the middlemost hill, backing up as the tower approached it. From what he could see, it seemed like the sisters were splatted as well. He cursed under his breath and submerged into the ink, awaiting the tower's arrival. As it neared, he snuck around it and splatted the two inklings on it as part of another ambush. The tower track turned orange as they were splatted, signifying that no one was on the tower. He climbed on top of it, and the trail turned blue once more as it headed in the right direction. Via soon joined him on the tower, and they kept watch as it passed the first checkpoint.

"Wow," a new voice suddenly commented as they dipped down towards the lowest level.

Leaning against the wall was a tan-skinned inkling with hair slicked to the opposite side of Roy's, patting a Luna Blaster Neo. Like Roy, he wore a varsity jacket, though instead of a skull bandana and red hi-tops, he wore Squidfin hook cans and Annaki Habaneros.

Roy emerged from the ink on the base of the tower just to growl, "Wyatt." His cousin Wyatt Requiem had been his rival since childhood, imitating him in quite a few ways. They wielded the same type of blaster, they normally possessed the same ink color, and they were both on the baskfishball team. Wyatt was the hot one, but Roy was better in every other way.

"Nice seeing ya here," he jested, aiming his blaster. "It would be a shame if you lost."

"Not today!" Octavia leaped off the tower and swung her brush at him. He dodged the swipe and placed something on the ground as he made his escape. The wavy-haired girl continued chasing after him, the device lighting up as soon as she stepped on it. It exploded behind her, lime ink splatting onto her back and marking her with the thick black cloud that swarmed its surroundings. _Ink Mine._

With his cousin gone, the tower could hopefully proceed without further interruption. It halted for a few seconds in order to pass the checkpoint in the underpass, and once it was clear, it started moving once more. Roy wrapped an arm around the pillar, scanning the area for any incoming enemies. His eyes drifted up to the highest point of the stage, where he saw Liam respawn. He bit his lip. With how great the Jet Squelcher's range is, he could splat him without the red-eyed inkling even laying a finger on him. He could retreat, but doing so could allow the opposing team to take the tower again.

He watched as Liam dipped into the ink, the ripples marking his trail. "This way!" Roy then called, desperate for help. He curled his fingers around his blaster, filled with uncertainty. He risked a look over his back, to see what was happening. More ripples could be seen in the lime ink behind him, and the squid in it soon emerged with a bomb launcher, revealing himself to be Wyatt. He started hurling suction bombs at the tower, hoping to splat his rival. Roy flattened his back onto the pillar, hearing bombs go off behind him.

The bombs were not Roy's only concern, of course. Liam was still progressing towards him, and he was bound to pop out at any moment. The tan-skinned inkling started shooting at the area around him, hoping to garner enough points to activate his special. If anything could save him while keeping the tower at the same time, it was the Baller. Just as the spiky-haired boy hurled a burst bomb at him, his hair started to glow, and fortunately, he managed to activate his special before he could be splatted.

As the tower sped towards the second checkpoint, going up the ramp, he rolled the Baller straight towards Liam, knocking him over. At that moment, Yuri arrived, splatting Wyatt and covering the area in blue ink with his Heavy Splatling Deco. He winked and pulled out a bubble wand, creating three humongous bubbles with the Bubble Blower. He charged up the splatling once more, soon unleashing tons of bullets to burst the bubbles. They showered the entire area with their team's ink, much to Roy's relief. When the Baller expired, it exploded, covering even more turf.

Octavia had super-jumped to Yuri, putting her in action once more. She quickly hopped on the tower and began swinging her brush back-and-forth, creating a barrier of ink that could easily splat someone. Using the newly-gained turf to his advantage, Roy lurked around the area, submerged. Quickly it arrived at the third checkpoint, bringing the Rainbow Squids closer to victory. Carter appeared with his Clash Blaster again, jumping down to the tower. He threw a splat bomb at the tower, forcing Via to jump off it before she got caught up in the blast. Chuckling, he attempted swimming towards it, but then he received a swift blast to the back from the red-eyed squid and exploded into a puddle of blue ink.

The attack wasn't over, though, as Seb arrived and started shooting at the opposing team. It was then Alexis had super-jumped to Roy and started running towards him, pointing her Splat Dualies at him. Seb smirked under his streetstyle cap and threw out a splash wall before diving into his small spot of turf to fill his ink tank. The short-haired inkling sighed and started shooting at the splash wall. Roy looked over his shoulder to see Wyatt climbing onto the tower, turning the track a lime color once more. His cousin looked over at him, his sea-green eyes glowing with satisfaction.

"Get on the tower!" Roy demanded, running towards it. _I'll wipe that smug look off your face._ He leaped up towards it and fired his Luna Blaster. Wyatt put another ink mine on the tower and fled, much to his dismay. He growled and threw a splat bomb over the tower before climbing up it himself. The track turned blue again, and the tan-skinned inkling watched as Yuri backed up at the wall, firing his splatling towards Wyatt, who was walking up to him, firing the Luna Blaster Neo. With the Heavy Splatling's rapid-fire, though, his cousin quickly went down. With that, Yuri joined Roy on the tower, followed by Octavia.

Meanwhile, the splash wall Seb had put up broke, and now he was firing with the .96 Gal Deco. Thanks to his poor accuracy, Alexis easily dodge-rolled around him, firing at him with her dualies. Overwhelmed, his aim became worse and worse until she splatted him. After that, she joined her friends on the tower by the time they passed the third checkpoint. More bullets rained down on them, splatting Alexis and Yuri. Roy looked up to see Liam, who had respawned and now attacked with his Custom Jet Squelcher.

However, the boy's final efforts to stop them ended in failure, as the two remaining Rainbow Squids managed to push the tower to its goal, locking it in place. A whistle blew, marking the end of the game.

"Yes!" Roy cheered, giving Octavia a high-five.

"No!" Wyatt cried, joining Liam. He glared at him and scolded, "You should have used your burst bombs!"

"Hey, I didn't have time to think," his spiky-haired teammate argued, crossing his arms.

"I gotta admit, Blacktip," started Seb, walking up to the two and sitting next to him. He held the .96 Gal in his lap. "You and your friends are pretty good together."

"Hmm… I'm still better," Wyatt argued.

"Well, we beat you, so I'm better," the inkling with his hair swept to the side rebutted. As the cousins continued arguing, Octavia sighed, smiled, and shook her head.

Shortly thereafter, the two cats arrived on the tower with their flags. Judd and Li'l Judd danced per usual, and then Judd struck out his blue flag, causing the smaller cat to fall over on his back, marking the Rainbow Squid's victory. Some people cheered in the background.

"Nice!" a familiar voice then cheered. Everyone turned around to see the Cool Rainbow Squids, Asher, Bonnie, Inigo, and Perry, residing on an out-of-bounds staircase. Perry made victory signs with his fingers and added, "We're not down yet!"

"You won, too?" Octavia asked.

Bonnie nodded. "It was pretty easy, actually. We faced a team called 'Bamboozle!'. Everyone on the team had a Bamboozler."

"Spoiler alert: we won," the pale-skinned inkling finished.

"Our team was more balanced, wasn't it?" Asher mused.

The girl with glasses nodded. "Which is why we won."

"And we won as well," added a new voice.

Standing nearby were Octa Prisma. The new speaker had been Giovanni, a smirk on his face.

"Ooh, I do like that jacket," complimented Yvonne, who now held up the green-haired inkling's arm, marveling at the custom painted F-3 he wore. "Where can I find one?"

"I got this from Arowana Mall," replied Asher, an awkward smile on his face. "…But I'm sure you can buy it from the Galleria."

The dark-skinned octoling began enthusing to Giovanni in a different language, presumably Octarian. Gio replied something back in the same tongue, his tone harsh. Yvonne frowned as a result.

At this point, Yuri and Alexis had now joined the rest of the group. "You guys were watching?" noted the short-haired girl.

"We had free time," commented Inigo.

"You're movin' on to the next round, right?" the yellow-haired inkling asked for clarification. Everyone nodded. "Booyah!"

"And do not forget," Oscar started, "Octa Prisma will be moving on, too."

Iris looked up from a notepad and added, "And we will win this. We must."

"A little intense there, aren't ya?" Perry snarked. The green-haired octoling walked up to him and slapped him. He rubbed his cheek and mumbled, "Ow…"

"I am not becoming humiliated again," Gio snapped. "Not by inklings like you."

"Well, Rainbow Squids," started Seb, shifting everyone's attention to the inkling with the .96 Gal Deco. "Good luck."

"Do we obtain luck?" Yvonne asked.

He smiled. "…And good luck to you too, Octa Prisma."

"May the best team win," Liam added.

"Right!" everyone cheered.

"We should be heading back now," Asher noted. "The next round will probably be starting soon."

"Oh, you're right!" Octavia agreed. "We should head back soon!"

"How about now?" Roy declared. He turned into a squid and prepared to super-jump. "Last one there's a rotten egg."

"Hey, that's not fair!" The wavy-haired inkling super-jumped after him.

And with their arrival back to Deca Wings, the next round could commence at last.

* * *

**A/N: Welcome back to "The Rainbow Squids"! Season 2 makes its debut, now! What do you all think? Wondering what the outcome of this tournament will be? Well... this IS part one of an arc. Part 2 comes out tomorrow, January 4th, while Part 3 comes out on Sunday, January 5th. So, the winner will be revealed Sunday. Stay tuned, and Branchwing, out.**


	31. Make It Rain!

_Octavia's PoV_

Several rounds later, the Deca Tournament had arrived at the semifinals. There were only four teams left—both teams the Rainbow Squids were in, Octa Prisma, and a team called Walleye Workers. All of them had pictures taken before the semifinal announcement was put up, so all the teams now flashed across the screen, one-by-one.

Octavia assumed the Walleye Workers all worked at Walleye Warehouse. They appeared to be her age, and they all wore Squiddor polos. Otherwise, they seemed to be a rather balanced team. _Which is probably why they made it this far,_ she realized. If the Warm Rainbow Squids were up against them next, then they would have to try their hardest to win.

"Hey, Bon-Bon?" Via asked, leaning over to her blue-haired friend. "What if both of us make it to the final round?" She frowned. "We'd have to fight each other."

"Well, we can't just throw it. That's just poor sportsmanship," she noted.

"Can't we split the prize we get?" Inigo pointed out.

"Yeah, but the winner also gets bragging rights," Alexis added. "And we know who would brag if we win." She glanced over to Roy, who crossed his arms and huffed in response.

"And on our side..." began the indigo-haired boy, "that's also a little obvious."

"That's me," Perry admitted.

"Hey, welcome to the semifinals, Inkopolis!" Pearl suddenly greeted, directing everyone's attention over to the stage where Off the Hook resided. "We're almost at the end!"

"Isn't it exciting?" Marina reckoned. "But anyways, to the match-ups!"

The screen behind them suddenly filled in the bracket, displaying the match-ups. The Warm Rainbow Squids were up against Walleye Workers, while the Cool Rainbow Squids were up against Octa Prisma. Octavia glanced down at the stands to see Giovanni looking at her friends over his shoulder, smirking. It did not take long for him to return his attention back to the pop duo.

"The Warm Rainbow Squids vs. Walleye Workers!" exclaimed the pale-haired idol. More pictures of them flashed on the screen.

"The Cool Rainbow Squids vs. Octa Prisma!" the dark-haired idol then followed, even more pictures of the mentioned teams flashing on screen.

"This time, it'll be Rainmaker." informed Pearl.

"Ugh, I hate Rainmaker," Via grumbled quietly.

"So, good luck, and may the best team win!" Marina finished.

Two launchpads appeared beside the stage, and the remaining teams started walking over to them. When they arrived, the Rainbow Squids gave each other one last encouraging look before stepping onto them, whisking them away to their next destination.

Moments later, they spawned into Port Mackerel, and the whistle blew, starting the match. Immediately, Octavia put her bristles down to the ground and started running towards the center of the map, a determined look on her face. She was confident her friends were swimming behind her in the trail left behind, ready to back her up when the time came. They managed to reach the barrier first, so they began firing their weapons, making it expand and covering it in red-orange ink. For a moment it shrunk, and through the golden haze surrounding the Rainmaker, she spotted a turquoise trail straight ahead. It did not hinder the Rainbow Squids at all, as the shield soon exploded. Immediately Alexis charged towards it and picked up the Rainmaker.

"I wouldn't advance just yet," Yuri advised, his yellow eyes drifting towards the trail. He started charging up his splatling.

Via nodded in agreement. "They're probably waiting to ambush us." She submerged into the ink and began lurking around in the ink left behind from the shield's explosion. She opted to wear a sweater with Ninja Squid as its primary ability today instead of her normal one with Swim Speed Up, allowing more surprise in her attacks.

From the side of the clearing came some bullets, hitting Yuri's side. He swam back, abandoning his charge, and threw out a splash wall to block the incoming fire. He gestured for Alexis to go, and after a few moments, she fired a charged shot from the Rainmaker and began swimming, the glow marking her. Roy ran after her. Once the splash wall broke, the dark-skinned inkling started firing, and a male inkling soon screamed. Behind him, someone rose a Splat Roller.

Alarmed, Via emerged and started running towards her friend to push him out of the way. "Watch out!" she called. Yuri's lips formed an 'o' and began looking around. Unfortunately, by the time she got to him, they slammed down their roller, splatting both of them. When the two respawned, Alexis soon appeared after them.

"Where's Roy?" the spiky-haired boy asked the younger inkling.

She shrugged. "I dunno, but we gotta get moving." The short-haired inkling started swimming down the stage, and they promptly followed her. More turquoise ink covered the area now, and the light the Rainmaker emitted peeked above the crates. The wavy-haired inkling started meandering around the crates until she could comfortably catch the holder off-guard. A boy with a ponytail was walking towards the open area near the Rainbow Squids' base, charging up the golden weapon and firing as he went. Smirking, she ran up behind him and started swinging her brush, quickly bringing him down. The Rainmaker began to glow where he was splatted, and a barrier soon formed around it again.

"Over here!" she yelled. As she was swinging her brush, sharp ink suddenly pierced through her back, splatting her in a single shot. _Or not!_ she wanted to say as a response, but she had been incapacitated at the moment.

When she respawned, theories of what had splatted her ran through her mind. It had to have been a charger, but what kind? An E-liter? A plain old Splat Charger? Or maybe even a Squiffer? She recalled seeing a girl with a charger in the pictures depicting the Walleye Workers, but she couldn't remember which one it was. Whatever the case, she couldn't let them inhibit her ability to battle. She super-jumped to her sister, just in time to watch the Rainmaker shield explode in their own ink color. Roy picked it up, though he was splatted by another charged shot as he was swimming through the red-orange ink.

"What the heck?" Octavia muttered.

"Up there!" Yuri yelled as he pressed against a crate. Via turned around, and illuminated by the sun was a wavy-haired girl holding a Custom E-liter 4K Scope, standing on top of a crate. Her red eyes, one of which was covered by an eyepatch, were narrowed as she aimed. Seconds later, she fired and landed a direct hit on the distracted bronze-skinned inkling.

She cursed herself for not paying attention as she respawned and super-jumped to Alexis again. Admittedly, it was a miracle someone else didn't splat her beforehand. Meanwhile, the enemy team popped the Rainmaker shield again, and a boy with almond skin, who previously wielded a standard Slosher, picked it up. A girl with the Splat Roller threw out a curling bomb, creating a trail for him to swim in. They were heading dangerously close to the goal.

"What's our plan?" her sister whispered to her.

"Let's ambush them to get the Rainmaker out of their hands," Octavia started, "and then we take out that sniper."

"Why the sniper?"

"She's the biggest threat, with that good of an aim."

"Mm, I think my dodge rolls can confuse her."

"Not for long."

"Then why don't I be a distraction, and someone else can take her out when she's not looking?"

"That's... not actually a bad idea." The elder sister placed a squid beakon on their hiding spot and called her teammates over to them. "Explain to them the plan while I do this."

Alexis gave a thumbs-up, and then Octavia dove into the ink and swam towards the opposing team. The boy with the ponytail from earlier, who was revealed to normally wield a Splattershot Pro, was covering the turf around them. With the threat of enemy ink drawing near, she acted almost immediately, launching herself towards the boy with the Rainmaker and attacking him until he splatted. She smiled and changed her target to the other boy. Panicked, he threw out a point sensor, marking her with the swirling black arrow, before shooting at her. She managed to get a hit on him before she splatted herself.

She wasted no time getting back onto the battlefield, super-jumping to the beakon she placed and replacing it. She arrived just in time to see the sniper retreat from an incoming bomb, in which Alexis then went after her. She jumped from the crate down to the ground, backing up as the short-haired inkling closed in. She threw a burst bomb at her before finishing her off with a shot from her dualies. She then pulled out some Tenta Missiles, launched them, and continued inking the turf.

Behind her, the barrier blew up, and Yuri grabbed it. With a nod, Octavia put the bristles of her Octobrush Nouveau down to the ground and began running straight ahead, creating a convenient trail for him to swim in. Occasionally, she looked behind her back to make sure no one was about to ambush them. When they reached the middle of the stage, Roy joined them.

"Don't you think Alexis's being a little too cocky?" he pointed out.

"You're one to talk," the wavy-haired girl teased.

Yuri emerged from the ink to charge up a shot from the Rainmaker. "What do you mean?" he asked the red-eyed boy.

"She's charging ahead, inking everything without a care in the world. With a team as good as that one, it's just too risky," he explained.

"Well... she's still new to ranked battles," Octavia defended. "She'll learn from this."

"I guess you have a point," Roy admitted.

"On the bright side, if she keeps this up, then we might just win," Yuri encouraged.

"Well, I like winning," he said, a smile on his face, "so, let's do our best to win."

They now arrived at the open area on the enemy's side of the base. Alexis was nowhere to be seen. The dark-skinned inkling fired a shot from the Rainmaker, with the boy with the Splattershot Pro jumping out of its path. He threw out a point sensor at them, followed by an Ink Storm. The turquoise cloud rained on them, the droplets creating a burning sensation on contact. They were forced to scatter. Roy went to the left, Yuri continued straight ahead, and Octavia steered to the right.

The sniper camped out on a side passage, steadying her aim. Via grumbled. _Bombs would be really nice right now._ She surveyed her surroundings, using a sponge for cover. The Walleye Workers had done a good job covering their turf back up from whatever damage her sister had caused. Suddenly, she felt a shadow loom over her, and she rolled out of the way just before a Splat Roller squished her. She swung her brush at the wielder's feet, knocking her down. There, she made a mistake and emerged from behind the sponge, making her an easy target for the sniper. She splatted and was sent all the way back to the other side of the map.

_I really hope Yuri took the lead._ She super-jumped to her beakon again to shorten the walking distance and replaced it once more before moving on. Taking a side route, she placed another one for her convenience, and soon she arrived at the enemy's side once more. The shield had formed once more, its light poking out from behind the furthermost crate. She scanned the area once more, spotting Roy and Alexis at the other end. The former was soon splatted again, starling the latter. Via looked up and noticed a turquoise beam lengthening above her. She had an idea...

She made herself visible to the sniper, jumping up and swinging her brush to try to reach her. With some ink splatting onto her Squiddor polo, she looked up from her E-liter and began backing up, eyes widened. Regardless, she continued to charge it, the beam becoming longer. Octavia ran behind the sponge as the sniper was about to fire, seeing as it would absorb the impact. She heard the mechanical sound of the E-liter's fire, ensuring her safety once more. The bronze-skinned girl appeared once more to distract the pale-skinned one, doing the same method. Catching on to it, the sniper retreated, so Via ran back to the Rainmaker.

The battle to pop the shield was intense, the gold continuously expanding and deflating. The enemy had the advantage right now, but with Octavia now joining her own teammates, they could turn the tide. Pulling out some Tenta Missiles, she locked them onto the inklings behind the barrier and fired, the red-orange missiles quick to rain down on them. This move allowed the shield to pop, and several inklings screamed as they were splatted, whenever by the barrier or by the missiles.

"Grab it, Via!" Alexis yelled. "Now's our chance!"

Without a second thought, the wavy-haired inkling swiped the Rainmaker and ran up the ramp, towards the goal. Thankfully, the humongous explosion had painted the hill, allowing her to easily climb up it. She leaped up into the air and set the Rainmaker in place. It glowed as it locked in, and then a whistle blew.

"Booyah!" the Rainbow Squids exclaimed in triumph.

"Booyah, indeed," a new voice agreed. The almond-skinned boy wielding the Slosher walked up to them, clapping, followed by the other Walleye Workers. "You deserved it."

"Amid your...creative...solutions to take me down," the sniper added, "you guys work really well together."

"A solid team, really," noted the girl that wielded the Splat Roller.

"Thanks," Yuri said, smiling. "We are the Rainbow Squids, after all. But you guys were very good too."

"Guess I'll return the favor—thank you," the Splat Roller wielder replied.

"No problem."

"Where's the other half of the rainbow?" asked the boy wielding the Splattershot Pro rather sheepishly.

The sniper looked over at her teammate. "...You did read the bracket, right? Or at least see the pictures?"

"They're the own separate team," the Slosher wielder elaborated.

"Oh, yeah..." He hid behind the other boy once more.

"Well, we just gotta wait for Judd to make it official, now," remarked Octavia. She sat down next to the goal and started fiddling with her Octobrush.

Roy yawned and leaned against the bumpy wall. "I'm taking a nap after this."

"Same," agreed Via.

"Count me in," added the girl with the roller, rubbing her red eyes. "At least the Walleye Workers get to take a break at last."

At that moment, Judd and Li'l Judd arrived near the goal and started dancing. Judd struck out a red-orange flag, marking the Rainbow Squids as the winner of the match.

"Well, that's done and done," Roy stated. "Let's go back, now."

"Before you leave..." started the boy with the Slosher. "We should battle again sometime. It'll be really fun!"

"What Dominic's trying to say is..." continued the sniper. "We want your numbers."

The Rainbow Squids agreed, and the two teams exchanged phone numbers briefly. "What are your names?" asked Alexis.

"I'm Deadeye," the girl with an eyepatch introduced. "As you probably guessed, the squid with the Slosher's Dominic. The girl with the roller's name is Scarlet, and the boy with the shooter's name is Forrest."

"Nice to meet you all," Yuri greeted. "I'm Yuri. The girl with the brush's Octavia, AKA Via. The boy with the blaster is Roy, and the girl with the dualie's Alexis." The other Rainbow Squids waved as their names were called.

"Now can we go back?" the tan-skinned boy asked.

"Yes," replied Octavia. All of them transformed into squids and super-jumped back to Deca Wings. The bracket was already updated by the time they got back, much to her surprise.

When they walked back to the stands, they sat down and closed their eyes, trying to take a quick nap. A little later, Via heard footsteps approaching them. When she opened her eyes, she was met with her distraught friends. Bonnie had her head down, staring blankly at the Squiffer in her hands, while Perry was wiping tears from his eyes. Inigo immediately ran past them and sat down on the far end of the bleachers, facing away from them, while Asher was nowhere to be seen. Octavia brought the Warm Rainbow Squids' attention to the other squids, and as soon as they saw their faces, they gave concerned looks to each other.

"Guys?" Octavia spoke up, reaching a hand out for them. "Are you alright?"

"We lost," Perry croaked, setting his Sloshing Machine down and crossing his arms. "It isn't fair."

The wavy-haired inkling looked aghast. "You lost?" she reiterated under her breath.

"Then that means..." Yuri started, looking over at the other team that had arrived on the bleachers. Octa Prisma was chatting away happily. Giovanni looked over his shoulder and then stood up, smirking.

"We're facing _them_," concluded Alexis.

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! I just wanna thank you all for 1,000 views on "The Rainbow Squids"! Thank you everyone for reading, and Branchwing, out!**


	32. A Thrilling Finale

_Yuri's PoV_

Yuri hated to see his friends in distress. When that was the case, he always tried to cheer them up, often by showing silly pictures, reciting funny stories, or saying to look on the bright side of things. But this...? He didn't think there was a way he could cheer them up this time. The Rainbow Squids were confident all of them would make it to the final round, so the Cool Rainbow Squids' lost took a hard hit on them.

_But we'll win, right? To make up for it,_ he told himself. Unlike other times, however, he was unsure. If Octa Prisma beat one half of the team, then there's no saying they couldn't beat the other, either. _We'll just have to try our best, then._

"Welcome to the final round!" Pearl exclaimed. Everyone's attention turned towards the pop duo. "Hope y'all are ready!"

"This round's mode is Splat Zones," continued Marina. "And the map?"

A drumroll sounded before the giant screen behind them displayed a supermarket. "MakoMart!" the pale-skinned idol announced.

"Splat Zones on MakoMart, huh?" Yuri commented to his friends. "Not bad at all."

"We don't know what Octa Prisma's capable of," noted Alexis. "We have to be careful."

"Do we have a plan?" asked Octavia.

"My plan? Push ahead, so they'll have a hard time leaving their base," Roy suggested, folding his arms. He chuckled. "We'll beat them, I promise."

"There will be a launchpad for both teams to jump on when they're ready," explained Marina.

"Y'all can watch it live, or stay back here and watch it on the screen!" continued Pearl. "It's your choice!"

"We'll be commentating it live, too," added the dark-haired idol. "As a bonus, of course!"

"And remember: Don't get cooked... Stay off the hook!" concluded both of them. The crowd cheered, eager for the match to start. Off the Hook stepped up to the launchpad on the center of the stage, transformed into squids, and super-jumped away.

"Well, you heard her!" exclaimed the red-haired inkling. "Let's get moving!"

Before they departed, the yellow-haired boy turned to his friend. "Don't ya worry, Perry," he assured, "we'll win this match. And then we can split the money."

"I sure hope so," the other boy murmured.

The Warm Rainbow Squids walked up the stage, to the swirling circle that would take them to their next destination. Yuri eyed their opponents, who were approaching the stage as well. _We can win_, he repeated to himself. The spiky-haired inkling himself turned into a squid and super-jumped with his teammates.

Moments later, he emerged from a spawn point with his team, and once the match started, they immediately cleared a path of green ink to the center of the stage. They managed to arrive at the same time as the other team, who aggressively pushed, too. The dark-skinned boy climbed up one of the central boxes, giving him a vantage point. He threw out a splash wall in front of him and charged up his Heavy Splatling Deco, aiming at the attackers. Within seconds, he fired, splatting Oscar with his Inkbrush and all. When his current charge finished, he had to stop and refill his ink tank. The splash wall broke as he was doing so.

Meanwhile, the splat zone was still contested. Everyone battled fiercely, purple and green ink flinging around. In the distance, he could hear a faint cheer, likely from the spectators. When his ink tank filled up, Yuri emerged from his little spot on the crate and charged up his splatling again. Before he could fire, he was splatted with a face full of deep purple ink. With the shot resembling a roller's vertical swing, it had to have been Iris that splatted him.

He would not let that faze him in the slightest. He swam back to the middle, just in time to watch Octa Prisma claim the splat zone. The jumbotron overhead displayed the counter, with the enemy's team score counting down by the second. He frowned, but they had to keep pushing forward. He charged up his weapon and approached them. He started to fire it, but then Oscar popped out of the ink to attack him with his own weapon. They splatted at the same time, much to Yuri's dismay.

The next time he respawned, Yuri decided to take a different route. He inked a path towards the sponge on their side, swam by it, and then inked the side of the stack of boxes to reach the zone once more. Climbing on top of the box, he noticed Giovanni, shooting the area below with his Octo Shot Replica. Once his splatling was charged up, he fired at him and quickly splatted him without him ever noticing. Next, he pulled out Bubble Blower and swung it around, creating three large spheres containing green ink. Though useful for inking, it unfortunately caused the attention to be turned to him now.

Iris scowled and ran towards the spiky-haired inkling with her Krak-On Splat Roller, preparing to swing it. He stepped out of the way of the splatter, and before she could land another hit, Via popped up behind her and splatted her with a few strikes of her Octobrush Nouveau. Yuri charged up his weapon and fired at the shrinking bubbles. _Huh?_ With help from the others, they burst, though he heard a girl cry out following the explosions. _Yvonne?_ Nonetheless, they managed to claim the zone for themselves.

"Booyah!" they cheered. On the screen above them, their team's counter now went down, while Octa Prisma's counter had a penalty added to it.

"We need to push ahead," Alexis demanded.

"No, we need to hold our ground," Octavia argued. "We can't afford any of us splatting."

"I gotta agree with Alexis," Roy spoke up, running next to her. "Better stop Gio and friends at the source."

"Well, if anything goes awry here, hopefully I'll have my bubbles," Yuri assured. Though he could play more offensively, he much preferred playing defensively. Besides, since Via was so adamant on staying, he might as well back her up.

The short-haired inkling looked between her friends and nodded with a smile. "Got it." Roy and Alexis ran towards the battlefield directly in front of the enemy team's base, while Yuri and Octavia remained on the splat zone, like they said. The spiky-haired boy prepared his splatling, just in case anyone decided to jump out in front of him. He heard something land behind him, and he looked over his shoulder to see what it was. He could barely see a splat bomb, but it exploded and splatted him before he could register it.

When he respawned, he immediately super-jumped to Octavia, only to find that it was a bad idea. Immediately he was trudging in enemy ink. Oscar gasped as when he landed, taking a few steps back.

"Oscar!" he heard Giovanni yell. The octoling with the afro looked over at the boy with the mohawk, who was standing boldly on one pile of boxes. "Do attack him!"

"My apologies!" He started swinging his Inkbrush at Yuri, though he had already made a trail of ink for him to escape. He swam up an aisle, back towards his team's base. When he was safe, the dark-skinned inkling began inking the corner until his hair started glowing. Running back towards the splat zone with a Bubble Blower, he swung the wand to create three large bubbles once more. Once they were out in the air, he fell back to charge up the Heavy Splatling Deco. Once he released the charge, the bubbles popped and the Rainbow Squids claimed the zone once more. However, it was not without a penalty, as Octa Prisma managed to briefly claim the area.

The Rainbow Squids regrouped in the very middle of the splat zones, becoming more vigilant than ever. Alexis was quick to admit that her idea was a bad one, earning a 'I told you so' from her sister. They guarded each side of it, Yuri guarding the side closest to their base. Though, he had to admit, nothing much was happening. The others were doing a good job of preventing the opposing team from surrounding the splat zone with purple ink. He kept charging up and firing his splatling until there was no more turf left to cover. He set down the splatling and wiped the sweat off his forehead, but then he heard some whirring. Looking over his shoulder, an autobomb was approaching, so he panicked and fled the area.

Now, Yuri stood on rubber. He watched as a dark-skinned girl leaped into the air, a purple circle marking the area of impact appearing around her. The Splashdown created a whirlwind of ink, and he heard some of his friends scream. He winced at their screams, but now he charged up his splatling and ran towards Yvonne. However, by the time he got up the hill and fired, he found that she was gone, the only indicator of her presence being a shrill cackle.

"Alright, where are ya..." he muttered under his breath. He crossed the marker and into the now-purple splat zone. Suddenly, Yuri noticed ripples heading straight for him. He threw out a splash wall, and the attacker was splatted instantly, leaving a puddle of green ink behind. He cheered, but then a bullet of ink hit him right in his side. When he respawned, he noticed Roy was covering up some extra turf. He ran up to him, much to the tan-skinned boy's surprise.

"Woah!" Roy gasped. When he realized who it was, he relaxed. "Hey, Yuri."

"Hey," he greeted back. "Whatcha doing?"

"I'm trying to get my special," he explained. "A Baller should be enough to reclaim the splat zone."

"Got it."

He gave Yuri a light punch to his shoulder. "Can't give up now, can we?" The two laughed and went their separate ways.

The spiky-haired inkling decided to climb up the boxes that would lead him to the splat zone and camp out there. Since he was towards the enemy side, he would have to be careful. He watched two octolings swim around in the splat zone, ripples marking their presence. If he wasn't in the midst of a battle, he could have watched this all day long. Currently, they served as something to occupy his time while he waited for the chance to strike.

Suddenly, green markers appeared around the two. They immediately swam away, with green missiles chasing after them. Yuri popped out of the ink and started charging up his splatling. Its rapid fire allowed him to cover the splat zone right back up, allowing them to claim the splat zone once more. When Roy arrived, hair glowing, he noticed what had happened and grumbled. He still activated his Baller regardless and ran down the ramp, towards Octa Prisma's base.

What happened next regarding Roy was not good. The octolings jumped out at him and simultaneously attacked his Baller. It popped, and then he was splatted. The dark-skinned inkling gulped. _That can't be good._ All four of them started running back to the splat zone, weapons ready. He threw out a splash wall to hopefully give him time to gain just a few more points for his special. He covered up a few stray spots of purple and immediately pulled out the Bubble Blower. Before he could swing it even once, a wave of purple ink crashed down on him and splatted him.

Yuri respawned and ran back to the splat zone, where Octa Prisma had claimed it once more. More green markers appeared around the group, causing them to flee once more. Once the missiles had landed, however, they were back in the fray. Octa Prisma and the Rainbow Squids battled for control of the splat zone for what seemed like forever. Whenever someone splatted, it seemed like there was always someone to replace them. Yuri and Yvonne both proved the most resilient on their respective teams—long-ranged weapons were quite the advantage here.

Eventually, the Rainbow Squids managed to claim the splat zone. They all cheered, and the spiky-haired inkling jumped down from his vantage point to join his teammates.

"We did it!" he cheered. "We did it!"

"We actually did it," Alexis further elaborated.

"Time's not up just yet," Roy pointed out, glancing over at the clock on the jumbotron. Though the Rainbow Squids were in the lead right now, there was still at least a minute before the match ended.

"There's still a minute left?" Octavia marveled.

"We need to focus," the inkling with his hair swept to the side asserted. "Octa Prisma could still take the zone."

"And we gotta win!" Yuri added. "For the others. I promised we would win, and we'll do just that."

"Then what are we waiting for?" he challenged. "Let's go!" At that moment, a roller slammed down on him, and behind where he stood was Iris.

"You are talking too much," she said. The remaining inklings looked behind them, where they saw the other octolings inking the area around the zone. "You can no talk to win." After she finished her sentence, she activated the Baller, the barrier surrounding her as she rammed into them. Yuri and Octavia were knocked down, while in the corner of his eye, the former saw Alexis scurry away. "That is why we win," Iris concluded. The Baller exploded, splatting the two of them and allowing Octa Prisma to reclaim the zone once more.

When they respawned, the wavy-haired girl complained, "What a dirty move." The grip on her Octobrush Nouveau tightened.

"What?" Yuri asked.

"She knocked us down! We couldn't defend ourselves or get away!" she explained. "Just... ugh!"

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now." He sighed. "We just gotta keep fighting." He took a side route to the right of him, swimming down until he reached the ramp leading to an open battlefield. Instead of going down it, he simply starting inking the surrounding area, aiming to hopefully regain his special. He swept the area with green ink, splatting some people along the way. For example, Giovanni activated his Inkjet and tried to splat him, but, using the cover the box provided to his advantage, Yuri managed to defeat him by charging up his splatling first and then targeting him.

After Gio had splatted in midair, the dark-skinned inkling's hair began to glow. "Booyah!" He pulled out Bubble Blower once more and swung it, creating three large bubbles once more. He promptly popped them, allowing the Rainbow Squids to gain the splat zone once more. Yuri jumped down to it, and soon his friends super-jumped to him as well.

Immediately after landing, Alexis pulled out some Tenta Missiles and fired them. "There," she said. "That should ward them off."

The short-haired girl was proved wrong, as a stream of bullets started speeding by them. Yuri looked up to find Yvonne emerging from behind a box on her team's side, her Hydra Splatling firing. The young inkling grumbled and started running towards her, spinning her dualies, only for the octoling to change her target and end up splatting her. Roy retaliated by throwing a bomb at her, which caused her to retreat.

Looking over at the counter, Octa Prisma was currently in the lead. However, the Rainbow Squids were catching up. Once the penalty was gone, they only had a little bit to go before they would surpass the other team's score. In the meanwhile, the other team continued to attack them. Oscar ran up to them with his Inkbrush, swinging at them with lightning speed. Roy tried firing his Luna Blaster, but the boy with the afro simply danced around his shots. Yuri threw out his splash wall to protect him while he charged up his splatling quickly. After a second or so, he fired, aiming it towards Oscar and splatting him.

He smiled, and with confidence, he charged up the Heavy Splatling Deco once more. However, before he could release this charge, something slammed into him and splatted him. Luckily, he noticed Alexis arrive back at the battlefield, eager to engage with the other team. Once again, Yuri ran back to the splat zone. There, he learned that the Rainbow Squids managed to control the splat zone long enough for the penalty to be removed. In the background, the alarm sounding overtime rang.

_Yes!_ At that moment, someone tripped him. He looked up to see Iris sticking a tongue out at him before she summoned the Baller. Yuri was left speechless and could only watch the following events. Giovanni, who was flying around in his Inkjet, rammed his gun into Roy's jaw, causing him to cry out in pain. Oscar and Octavia were chasing each other, and Yvonne joyfully cackled as she threw autobombs at Alexis. The Baller inksploded, coating the splat zone with purple ink and ending the game.

"No!" the short-haired inkling cried out, mirroring Yuri's thoughts.

The dark-skinned octoling still laughed. "That is fun! We should be doing this again, maybe with the Autobomb Launcher!"

"No games, Yvonne," stated Giovanni rather bluntly. He walked up to the splat zone from where he had activated his Inkjet. "Now, you see why Octa Prisma had defeated the other you team."

"You _attacked_ them as well?!" Roy roared. Though his speech was slurred, his fury still prevailed. "You _dared_ to hurt them?!"

"No!" Oscar cried out. "Their win not close!"

"Correct," the octoling with the mohawk confirmed. "We only take to attacking the you because you were very close to win."

"Know the best team," Iris concluded, throwing her roller over her back. "Octa Prisma."

"You..." Roy proceeded to throw a slew of curses and insults at the group of octolings, specifically targeting Gio. Octavia covered Alexis's ears, garnering an unimpressed look from the latter. Yuri rose to his feet and started waving his arms around in hopes he would get Roy's attention and calm him down. Giovanni simply kept a poker face at all of this, making it unclear what he was feeling. Yvonne and Oscar hid behind their friends. Iris initially had a smirk on her face, but her expression soon turned into one of fear.

Judd and Li'l Judd soon jumped down to the middle of the splat zone and began dancing. "Hey, Roy?" Yuri called. The tan-skinned inkling stopped and looked over at him, then at the two cats. Soon, Li'l Judd struck out a purple flag, marking Octa Prisma as the winner of the tournament. Roy let out a loud groan and threw his Luna Blaster down. "Roy?" he tried calling again.

"Leave me alone," he grumbled. He pulled down his skull bandana and wiped his lip. A bruise was forming where he had been hit.

"We need to get back," Via suddenly whispered in the dark-skinned inkling's ear.

"Right." He turned to look at his friend. "Hey, Roy... last one to Deca Wing's a rotten egg." He winked and promptly turned into a squid, preparing to super-jump back.

"Oh, we are needing to get the prize," the girl with poufy hair recalled, turning to her friend.

"The prize will make the win official," Giovanni remarked. "Octa Prisma, return to Deca Wings!" All of them immediately super-jumped away, followed by Yuri and the other Rainbow Squids.

When they arrived back at the park, they were met with cheers, though not for the Rainbow Squids. They were chanting Octa Prisma's name. The green-haired octoling waved at them as he and his team walked up to the center of the stage. The Rainbow Squids, meanwhile, found the others in the spectator bleachers. Thankfully, they did not join in on the applause, instead having dismayed looks on their faces.

They sat down next to their friends, and Bonnie muttered, "You lost too, huh."

"It wasn't fair!" Alexis cried.

"We saw," Perry said. "They tripped you squids up."

As if he suddenly remembered something, Inigo snapped his attention to Roy. "Are you OK?!" he asked rather frantically.

"Why would you think I'm OK?" fumed the red-haired inkling, pointing to the bruise on his jaw. "I'm obviously not OK!"

"_Ahem!_" Pearl suddenly interrupted, tapping on the microphone. The crowd silenced, and everyone had their eyes on the stage. "It's the moment y'all've been waiting for—the winner of the Deca Tournament!" The crowd roared with excitement.

"Despite the...altercations...at the end of the match," Marina started quietly. Louder, she continued, "The winner is..."

A drumroll sounded, and the duo announced at the same time, "OCTA PRISMA!"

The crowd cheered once more, though they quickly went quiet as Giovanni walked up to the microphone to make a speech. "Hello, hello. Thank you." He cleared his throat and began, "I like to thank everyone that had support Octa Prisma since the Deca Tournament begin. As well, I like to thank the supporters of Octa Prisma we gain through the tournament. We are proud to win, and we happy are taking the trophy and the prize. Thank you." After he had finished speaking, Gio returned to stand next to his teammates. Yuri lightly clapped just to be nice, but he did nothing else.

Pearl took the mic once more. "Now, y'all may be wondering, 'What's the special prize?'. Well, the prize is..."

A drumroll sounded once more, and Marina announced, "Free tickets to our next concert!" Yuri heard various comments from the crowd after she revealed the prize.

"Woah, that's so fresh!"

"Dude, they're so lucky!"

"Only the freshest inklings get free tickets for an Off the Hook concert!"

"Aw, now I wish I'd signed up..."

"Now, bring out the trophy!" Pearl exclaimed.

Some jellyfish carted out a giant, golden trophy in the shape of the Deca Tower and presented it to Octa Prisma. The group posed in front of it as one jellyfish took their picture. Another picture was taken of Off the Hook posing with them.

"There's 100,000G in that ginormous trophy," the short idol informed. The octolings looked inside it and pulled out a handful of coins.

"Split it if you will," the tall idol suggested. Then, more jellyfish came out holding smaller, individual trophies and gave one to each member of Octa Prisma.

"In second place, we have the Warm Rainbow Squids!" Marina announced. Yuri and friends stood up and walked out of the bleachers, to the stage. The crowd's cheers almost matched the volume of Octa Prisma's cheer, boosting Yuri's spirits.

Roy pulled up his bandana and started walking up to the microphone to make his speech, but Yuri whispered to him, "Why don't I make the speech instead?" He expected the tan-skinned inkling to slander Giovanni for hurting him, so he didn't want to take the chance and ruin their reputation. His friend nodded, and Yuri approached the microphone.

"Hey squids," the dark-skinned boy started. He gulped as he grew a little nervous. _Maybe I should have let Via speak instead._ "Though we didn't win...um...I just want to say, thank you for supporting us. Hearing your cheers are worth it. And we'll gladly take second place." He looked over his shoulder. "Right, guys?" His friends were unimpressed. "Um...yeah, right," Yuri finished.

After he finished his speech, he returned to his place next to his friends. The jellyfish came out with silver ribbons and gave one to each member of the group. It read, 'Second Place, Deca Tournament, 2017'.

"Special mention to the teams in the semifinals—the Walleye Workers and the Cool Rainbow Squids!" The aforementioned teams joined the others on the stage to accept their prizes.

Deadeye from the Walleye Workers stepped up to make her speech. "I don't have much to say, but I would like to say thank you. Everyone did amazing, and we're glad we could make it this far."

Next, Perry took the stage to represent the Cool Rainbow Squids. "Yo, thank y'all! Couldn't have done it without ya, that's for sure. Though we didn't win, I'm glad the other half of the team at least got second place. It's the best we could do." The jellyfish gave the semifinalists bronze-colored ribbons for their efforts.

Once again, the crowd cheered, and then Marina took the microphone. "Once again, thank you all for participating in this record-breaking tournament! Everyone who participated, pick up your participation ribbons on your way out."

"We'll see y'all next year for the second annual Deca Tournament!" Pearl added.

"And remember: Don't get cooked... Stay off the hook!"

* * *

**A/N: And arc, finish! Woo! What did you guys think? Liked it? Feel free to leave a review! From here on out, we'll be going back to a normal schedule for weekly uploads. See you guys next week, and Branchwing, out!**


	33. Trial and Error

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**A good bit of Marie's and Sheldon's dialogue is taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

Alexis still scowled at the second-place ribbon sitting on her dresser. _We should have won!_ she complained in her head. _We were so close, but Giovanni and friends had to smush into little pieces!_ She dug her fingers into her hair and gave off a loud groan, falling onto her bed. She then sprawled her limbs out on the blanket, her mind still fuming with anger.

The door creaked open, and Octavia poked her head through it. "Is this about the tournament?"

The short-haired inkling immediately sat up and looked at her sister. "You know how unfair it was!" She then turned her head to face the foot of her bed. "They cheated; I'm sure of it."

"Geez, you're being as sore of a loser as Roy," she teased. "I mean, yeah, Iris tripped Yuri, and Gio rammed the Inkjet gun into Roy. They just played dirty overall. But still."

"That's not helping."

The wavy-haired girl sighed and joined Alexis at her bed. "Look, I'm mad about it too, but… it just happens sometimes." She put a hand on her shoulder. "Trust me, I've had matches where my team lost like in the tournament before. _By one point_. But in the end, it's just another ranked match. Even in matches as important as that one."

_Just another ranked match..._ The words echoed in her head, but badly did she disagree. It was not just another ranked match. It was her tournament debut! And her older friends were fantastic at ranked battles, even in the modes they hated! Meanwhile, Octa Prisma had just formed, with Giovanni's recent arrival in Inkopolis and all. Despite the octolings being trained soldiers, they barely dipped their feet in ink battles, and inkling culture, for that matter. It's not fair.

"You OK?" Via asked.

"I'm fine," she grumbled and then rose from her bed. "I'm going out."

"OK, then… have fun! Don't get in trouble!"

Alexis left her house and walked to Inkopolis Square where she found the grate leading to Tentakeel Outpost. _I need to talk to Marie about this._ She delved into the manhole, and seconds later, she was all geared up in her hero suit, faced with the greenery in the canyon. Marie was sitting on a bench when her starry eyes noticed her fellow agent.

"Hi, Agent 4," she greeted, straightening. "Something on your mind?"

She didn't bother to greet her back, walking up her with her dualies in hand. "You know the tournament I entered?"

"Yeah, I watched it," Marie acknowledged. "Your team lost in the finals, didn't they?"

The orange-haired girl nodded, avoiding her gaze. "You know who won?"

"Octolings," she replied. "Those slobs." She put her umbrella down and crossed her arms. "I was sure you would win."

"Not just any octolings." Agent 4's eyes narrowed. "The one that followed us out of Octo Valley formed his own team." Hate seethed in her voice as she clenched a fist. "I don't understand why they want to beat us so badly! They got their wish, but they still chase after it!"

"Well… you've seen the Octarians. They're pretty devoted."

"It's like they don't know how to have fun!"

"I know, right? And that's why they're not fresh."

The bronze-skinned inkling couldn't help but giggle at the comment. "Well… I guess I should be going to the next kettle."

"Yeah, you should. Sheldon's got his next weapon ready."

"Ooh, what's it gonna be this time?"

"I dunno. I guess we'll see."

Alexis simply nodded. Quickly, she turned into a squid and super-jumped across the canyon. She soon arrived at a previously-revealed kettle hidden by metal walls, though the absence of stickers on it marked that she had not saved the zapfish inside just yet. She looked upon the stone that formed a curled tentacle, thinking. Then, she nodded and slipped inside to access the Octarians' lair.

The dome she appeared in was filled with various contraptions, the panels surrounding her shining a green light on them. She shook some yellow ink off of her as a drone carrying a box flew by, dropping the box off at her feet. She opened it to reveal a decorated Blaster and picked the weapon up. _Guess I'm gonna fight Roy-style today._

"OK, take this with you," Sheldon started. "It'll help me gather some practical battle data."

"Alright…"

"Boom! Bam!" the horseshoe crab suddenly exclaimed, startling Alexis. "It's that crowd-pleasing face popper… the Hero Blaster! Even enemies behind walls aren't safe from the Blaster's exploding shots! It doesn't really do rapid fire, so make sure not to get splatted between shots."

"Ah, don't you worry," she assured Sheldon. "I'll be fine." She fired the blaster once, collecting the power eggs surrounding the launchpad.

"Use the blast radius of the Blaster's shots to your advantage," Marie advised over her headset. Using the launchpad, the hero leaped to a lower platform to be immediately met with crates blocking the walkway. With one shot, the boxes all exploded, allowing her to collect even more power eggs. At the end of the path, she was met with a shielded Octotrooper situated on top of a small vault, who began to fire magenta bullets when it noticed her.

"Get around those shields with the burst from the Blaster's shots!" the horseshoe crab then informed. Agent 4 proceeded to aim her Hero Blaster off to the side, damaging the Octotrooper as it exploded. After a shot or two, it was splatted, allowing her proceed without any issue. She noticed that behind where it was were three launchpads, all on the same wall.

The idol had also noticed this as she mused, "OK. Three lockboxes, three launchpads."

"Hmm…" She inked the right side of the wall and took the corresponding launchpad, super-jumping somewhere else in the dome. She landed on an elevated platform, where two shielded Octotroopers patrolled the area up ahead, their trail marked with magenta ink.

"Gotta play it smart to take out those shielded baddies," Marie noted. Alexis nodded and inked a small amount of turf for her to hide in as they passed. When she could see the back of one of them, she emerged to fire one shot, splatting it instantly. The remaining Octotrooper saw this and shot out a magenta blob towards her, but quickly became confused once she hid in the ink once more. Like nothing had ever happened, it continued on its path once more. Alexis splatted it before it could progress much, though. Then, the middle part of the arena began to rise, revealing squid rings and a hidden path underneath. "I…guess we're going down."

The short-haired inkling jumped down the hole left behind and quickly inked a spot for her to hide in while she observed the Octotroopers up ahead. On top of a bumper was a shielded one, while the rest were just normal Octotroopers. Quickly, she shot the Hero Blaster at the unprotected Octarians, splatting them quickly, while the remaining Octotrooper shot some bullets at her. She chucked a splat bomb over it, distracting it and allowing her to splat it. With that, she continued navigating the narrow walkways.

As she turned the bend to climb up a wall, she suddenly met the face of an Octostamp. She gasped and almost tripped. The stamp-like Octarian started waddling towards her, and she started running back up the way she came in response. It leaped for her, leaving its weak spot exposed. Alexis quickly disposed of it and then continued up the wall. At the top, she was met with two switches turned inward. She activated them, causing the stage to turn around, laying out a new path. It was like she had just super-jumped to a new area in the dome. _Guess I'll have to go the way I came._

As she walked back up, more troops spawned and blocked her way. "Hey, Marie," she started, aiming her blaster.

"Yeah?" responded the idol.

"Do ya think I can splat that Octotrooper without throwing a bomb?"

"Yes, if you angle your shots right!" Sheldon suddenly butted in.

"I wasn't asking you," she snapped.

"He's right, though," Marie pointed out.

Agent 4 let out a tired sigh and smiled. "Just a normal day, huh?"

The three laughed, but they were quickly pulled out of their brief moment of happiness when the short-haired girl's hero suit broke. Alarmed, she started backing up against the wall, holding her breath as the shielded Octotrooper continued to shoot at her. When was the last checkpoint? She couldn't remember. Regardless, dismay crossed her face, wondering how far back in the map she would be sent back if she splatted right here. She jumped over the blobs, and the suit quickly repaired itself to her relief.

"...Let's just use bombs," the grey-haired inkling advised.

"Fine, fine." Alexis hurled a splat bomb over the Octotrooper, causing it to turn around to look at it in curiosity. While its back was turned, she fired the Hero Blaster, splatting it. "Good." She swam up the path of yellow ink until she reached more enemies. This time, there were two shielded Octotroopers and an Octostamp. She stepped up to them and blew a raspberry, leading them towards the edge of the walkway. The Octostamp leaped for her, but she quickly stepped aside before it could hit her. It proceeded to fall into the abyss. Power eggs from below floated towards her a few seconds later.

Next, she threw another bomb over the Octotroopers, distracting them once more. She swam behind him and splatted one of them. The other one was now stuck in her own yellow ink, where it struggled to climb free. She was easily able to splat it and move on. Agent 4 broke some crates and climbed up a wall before stepping onto the checkpoint. Lying in front of her was a golden key, followed by a launchpad.

"Got the key," Marie said as she picked it up. "Next stop: launchpad!" Turning into a squid on the swirling circle, she super-jumped back to the central area, where the rightmost launchpad had lowered down to the ground. Next, the short-haired inkling climbed to the middle launchpad, launching her to another location. The first thing she saw when she landed was a Grappalink.

"You can use the burst from the Blaster's shots to reach the Grappalink!" Sheldon informed.

"Got it." She aimed her blaster at the floating object and shot it, and she flew to a platform with yet another launchpad. It led to another area filled with Grappalinks. She climbed up the wall leading to the first one and looked down. There was a long line of them, with only a small stretch land saving her before the end of the line. She bit her lip. Above the first Grappalink was a Sunken Scroll, though there was no way in sight to get to it. _I wonder what it says._

"It's all about the timing," noted the idol.

_Here it goes._ Gulping, she fired her first shot and flew to the Grappalink, putting her in freefall. Realizing what was happening, she fired again, but it was too late as she fell into the abyss. She disappeared in a puff of yellow smoke, and she respawned at the checkpoint a few seconds later. Keeping Marie's advice in mind, Alexis walked up to the edge of the platform and fired again. She travelled to the Grappalink once more, and she fired the blaster again immediately after she transformed back into a kid. Her shot landed just above the next grapple, though it appeared to be too high, making her shot unable to register. Agent 4 fell once more, cursing herself for poor accuracy as she did.

_Alright_, she started silently. _This is the last respawn I got_. I have to get it this time! She ran up to the Grappalink and fired the Hero Blaster, propelling her to it. She started falling again, and moments later, she forgot to fire again. She fired upwards, hoping to hit it, to no avail. She disappeared, and soon the kettle spat her out like a sneeze. She flew out in the shape of a vaguely squid-shaped blob and quickly transformed back to land face-first on the grate. The short-haired inkling sat up and rubbed her face after the impact.

"Agh," Marie simply said over her headset. "You'll get it next time." She paused, and then she asked, "You wanna take a break?"

"Nope," the bronze-skinned girl replied. "I'm doing that level again, and again and again, until I finish it."

"That might take a while," she remarked.

"Well, I got all day." She dove into the kettle again, where she was immediately presented with the Hero Blaster. She snatched it and barreled ahead, not paying mind to any crates unless they were blocking her way. She quickly took down the shielded Octotrooper in the central area before taking the middle launchpad.

"You really want to get past this section, huh?" the idol commented.

"Yeah." Alexis fired her blaster twice to reach the next launchpad. "I can't let any more progress go down the drain."

She approached the Grappalink, eyeing it and the several more past it. She took a deep breath and began. She fired once, then twice, then thrice. When she went to shoot at the fourth one, she fired just a little too late, and she fell onto a thin platform. At the end of it was a launchpad. She walked over to it and used it, bringing her back to the beginning of the chain. Alexis simply grumbled and tried again. This time, all of the Grappalinks connected, and she landed on a higher platform.

"Booyah!" She walked down to the launchpad, where she found the key. She snatched it and launched back to the area where she came from. She unlocked the middlemost vault with the key she had obtained and activated the switch inside.

"Middle switch is on!" Marie exclaimed.

Agent 4 smiled, and then she took the right launchpad once more. She travelled through the area, obtained the key, and quickly returned to open the right vault. Once again, she fired at the tiny switch, activating it.

"Right switch is on!" the grey-haired lady then announced.

"Which means there's only one more!" Sheldon deduced.

"Good. I'm just about done with this place." The short-haired girl climbed up the left path in order to reach its launchpad. Her next stop was a catwalk, with a narrow, steep ramp directly in front of her. She climbed up it and activated the large switch. The paths in between the ramp rotated, allowing Alexis to continue. When she climbed up the next ramp, she encountered a Tentakook, waddling around in a circle. When it noticed her, it panicked and dropped a bomb behind it as it skated around.

Alexis jumped to the brick box in the center of the circle, and she observed the Tentakook. It still ran around, its panic only renewing with every look at the inkling. She aimed her blaster, and once she believed she could get the perfect shot, she fired. It was not the perfect shot, much to her dismay. Though it was covered in yellow ink, the Tentakook still stood. She had to fire it again in order to splat it.

"Going uuuup!" Marie cheered. The agent looked below her to see the block she stood on go higher and higher. It halted to a stop in front of a switch, which the girl promptly activated. It rotated down, bringing another circle to run around on with it. There were two boxes inside of it this time—one had a checkpoint on it. Alexis jumped over to it, where three Octocopters spawned. They immediately noticed her, spat out globs of magenta ink, and started flying over to her. She hid in the checkpoint to dodge the shots, and once they had past, she popped out and fired her blaster. All of them became covered in yellow ink, and one more shot took all of them out.

Suddenly, the block in front of her moved up. "The blocks are doing their creepy shifting thing again," the idol noted.

Alexis looked around to find nothing of importance. "...Where am I supposed to go?"

"I'm detecting a switch on the back of that block," Sheldon informed.

She walked around the circle, and soon she spotted a switch, right where Sheldon had said. "Hey, you're right!" She shot at it to activate it, causing a block back at the previous area to spin around.

"And now that block in the distance in the distance is spinning!" Marie marveled. The agent swam back to the tall brick platform to get in firing range with the spinning block. On one side was a switch, which she promptly activated. Some platforms in the distance started shifting over to where she was. She watched with curiosity as they moved.

_It's not _that_ creepy..._ Alexis remarked in her head. _OK, maybe it is a little creepy._ Once the catwalks settled, she carefully made her way to the ramp leading her to her next destination and climbed up it. Some Octocopters were patrolling the area. When they noticed her, they began shooting at her. When the girl tried shooting at them, the exhausts on their hats activated, allowing them to effectively dodge her shots. _Ugh, that's annoying._ Alexis continued shooting at them until they finally splatted. With that, she could continue on once more.

At the end of the catwalk was a checkpoint, followed by a key, then a launchpad. After she grabbed it, she heard Marie say, "Key: check. Launchpad ahoy!" Agent 4 turned into a squid on the launchpad, causing her to super-jump away from the maze, back to the central area. The left path containing the launchpad had lowered, and the bronze-skinned inkling went to unlock the leftmost vault. When she activated the switch inside, a box rose from where the middle switch stood. It spun around for a little bit before stopping, allowing her to climb up it and use the launchpad on its back.

Alexis landed on a drop-off to a large, open area. She broke the small orange crate on the industrial Squee-G, revealing armor, before jumping on it. She picked up the armor, and instantly her clothes became more padded and protective. She adjusted her helmet and smiled before submerging in the yellow ink.

"Ooh, I see a key!" the idol exclaimed. Indeed, there was a key, on a platform in the back of the area. She threw out a bomb in front of it, causing the Squee-G to perk up and travel towards it. However, it got distracted and started beeping as it headed towards one of the many Octotrooper. All of the Octotroopers panicked and tried getting away from all three industrial Squee-Gs. In the end, none of them were able to escape. To her surprise, Alexis actually felt kind of bad for them. But in the end, she still had to save the zapfish. She continued throwing bombs towards the platform that would lead her to the key, and after a while, the one she was riding finally squabbled over there, allowing her to jump off and grab the golden object.

Alexis turned around and noticed one last Octotrooper, this one with a shield, on top of a vantage point. It noticed the inkling and shot at her. Neither side could reach the other. After a little while, she threw a bomb at the ground to attract one of the Squee-Gs. Once one arrived, she hopped on it and directed it towards the central block. She inked the side of it and climbed up it. Soon, she was face-to-face with that shielded Octotrooper. It shot twice at her, breaking her armor. At the same time, Alexis shot slightly to its right, the blast damaging it until it splatted. In its place was a launchpad. She stepped onto the swirling circle and flew to a place infested with flooders.

"Woah," Marie gasped. "What is this place?"

"Uh..." Alexis started.

"It's like your own private island," she noted. "Except full of deadly flooders." She sighed. "Callie always hated flooders..." The idol went silent. The inkling now just stood there, watching the giant machines whir by.

"Marie...?" she broke the silence. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she told her. "I just... I just hope we find Callie soon."

"...Me too," Alexis admitted. She went up to the edge of the platform she landed on and sat down. Power eggs floated around in the distance, spinning in formations. "And the Great Zapfish, too."

"Right, right."

The girl got up and started jumping from block-to-block, aiming for the back of the island. She climbed up it and found it was decorated with fake palm trees. The sight was amusing, to say at the least. She collected the power eggs before turning her attention to the flooders. She waited for the ones with crates on them to pass by, where she promptly broke them, revealing even more power eggs. Finally, she hopped on one so she could travel to the highest platforms, where she found even more power eggs and even a ticket for the Crust Bucket. Alexis took one last moment to enjoy the view before stepping onto the launchpad to return her to the previous area.

Agent 4 landed on a Squee-G. She took the key out of her pocket and twirled it around her hand. She then put it away and threw out a bomb instead. She eventually guided it to a vault, where she jumped off and unlocked it. The vault opened to reveal yet another launchpad, and she stepped on it and proceeded to fly towards a small concrete platform framed by a neon octopus sign. Directly in front of her was a zapfish, positioned on the plug and surrounded by a golden barrier. One shot of the blaster broke the barrier, and the electric fish let out a gurgle. The bronze-skinned inkling leaped towards it and grabbed it in triumph.

"Finally!" she cheered. She proceeded to super-jump out of the kettle, zapfish in hand. She then started walking around, looking for Marie.

"You da squid, kid," the grey-haired inkling cheered. "Nice job."

Alexis simply smiled. She spotted Marie down in the ditch below and jumped down to her. She gave the zapfish to her and started walking back to the launchpad that would lead her back to Tentakeel Outpost.

"You done for the day, Agent 4?" the idol asked.

She looked over her shoulder and nodded. "Yeah."

"The tournament's not getting you down, is it?"

At the mention of the tournament, memories of the Rainbow Squid's loss flooded back into her head. She could never forget Giovanni's look of triumph, having a smug smirk she wished she could wash off his face. Her clasp on the Hero Blaster tightened at the thought. "...No, no it's not." She crossed her arms. "I just wanted to use this ticket I found." Alexis pulled the Crust Bucket ticket out of her pocket.

"...Alright, if you say so." Marie folded up her umbrella and set it down so she could wave. "See ya later."

"You too, Marie." The short-haired girl turned into a squid on the launchpad, sending her flying back to the Cuttlefish Shack. Once she arrived, she immediately dove into the grate leading back into Inkopolis. She popped out in her casual wear and ran to the familiar food truck near where the Rainbow Squids normally resided.

"Woah!" Crusty Sean gasped as Alexis, out of breath, approached the Crust Bucket and slammed the ticket on the counter. "You OK there?"

"Yeah..." she replied, gripping her knees. She raised her head and requested, "Just... give me a Deep-Fried Shwaffle, please."

"A Deep-Fried Shwaffle? Sure thing." The shrimp went to the back of his food truck and got out the necessary ingredients. Alexis watched as he made the Shwaffle, carefully frying everything to perfection. Once he topped the foodstuff resembling a piece of tempura with whipped cream, Crusty Sean brought the Shwaffle out on a yellow-striped napkin and gave it to the inkling. "Peace!" He saluted goodbye as Alexis took the item and searched for a table to sit at.

At one table was a lone inkling girl with wheat-colored skin, short pink hair, and matching pink eyes. It was Audrey, Alexis's friend. The girl was texting on her cellphone, a bored expression on her face. The bronze-skinned inkling walked over to her table and set her food down.

"Mind if I sit here?" she asked in a teasing tone.

Audrey looked up from her phone, and her eyes widened when she saw the other inkling. "Alexis?" she mused. "Yeah, of course!" The orange-haired girl sat down across from her and began eating her Deep-Fried Shwaffle. "It's been a hot minute," she remarked.

Alexis nodded in agreement. "I've been busy."

"Whatcha been up to?" the other inkling asked.

"Uh... stuff."

"Like what?"

"I just said, stuff."

"Battling?"

"I guess." Alexis scratched the back of her head. "So, what about you?"

"Y'know how I want to get S+ rank, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I got to S- in Splat Zones yesterday!"

"Ooh, congrats!"

"I know! Not much farther, now!" Audrey did some dramatic gestures. "Two more ranks, and I'll be S+ in one mode! This is great!" She pulled out a .52 Gal, faded marker on its barrel, and softly gazed at it. "Off the Hook signing my weapon really did bring me some luck," she whispered.

Alexis finished up her Deep-Fried Shwaffle and patted her belly. "Mmm... Makes me want to do some ranked battles."

"Well, I would love to battle with you, but..." The pink-haired girl sighed. "Your rank isn't very high."

"I know," she admitted. "I just like turf wars a lot better."

"Is that why you weren't happy at the Deca Tournament?"

"Huh?" A frown spread across Alexis's face.

"You didn't seem very happy when they were announcing the results."

"Well, I lost. _Duh_."

"Right, right... You sure there isn't another reason?"

"No!" she yelped. Audrey jumped at her exclamation. Guilt crept into the bronze-skinned girl's mind, and she started, "I..." She stood up and started backing up. "I'm... gonna go battle now."

"O...K...?" Alexis ran off, and her friend yelled, "Call me if you need me!"

The short-haired inkling ran into the Deca Tower and clenched her eyes shut. _Why do people keep bringing it up?_ She shook her head. _'It's just another battle,' Via said. Well, then it is!_ She steadied her hand on the railing. _It is, it is... it's not!_ She slumped to the ground, feeling something wet in the corner of her eyes. _Why does it keep bothering me...? I don't get it._ Finally, she let out a heavy sigh. _We should have won. But no, Octa Prisma _had _to cheat._

Alexis opened her eyes and wiped them, looking behind her back at the elevators inklings crowded into. "Stupid Octarians..." she muttered as she headed towards them.


	34. Winter Fashion

_Bonnie's PoV_

Bonnie and Octavia approached the ticket booth inside Arowana Mall. The former put out some coins and pushed it towards the lionfish running it. "Three tickets, please!" Bon-Bon requested.

"Three tickets for the Arowana Fashion Show?" the lionfish asked. They nodded. "OK." He took the coins, put in the cash register, and gave three tickets to the duo in exchange. The blue-haired inkling swiped the tickets, gripping them in her hand. "Have a nice day."

"You too!" Octavia called as they walked away from the booth. Bonnie ran her thumb through the three tickets, making sure each one she asked for was there.

The Arowana Fashion Show was a semiannual event held at Arowana Mall. Though the show does not garner as much attention, from both citizens and companies alike, as its much more prominent cousin, the Inkopolis Collection fashion show, it has the convenience of being much cheaper to attend. Plus, this year, it also happened to land on Geneva's birthday—they couldn't just not go!

"Who's the third ticket for?" the wavy-haired girl asked her friend.

"Ge... oh." Her blue eyes drifted down to the tickets she held. For a moment, she had forgotten that their green-haired friend was still on vacation. And to Bonnie's worry, no one knew when she was going to return. She wasn't answering their texts, answering their calls, or even posting on social media. "I guess it's for no one, then," she concluded.

"We could give it to Alexis," Via suggested.

"Why Alexis?"

"Well, she's my sister." She smiled. "And she's a Rainbow Squid, too."

"True." They met each other's eyes. "Wanna go ask her?"

"Exactly what I was thinking."

At Octavia's house, they were met with a 'no' from Alexis, much to their dismay.

"Why not?!" her older sister cried.

"I... promised my friend I would hang out with her tomorrow," the short-haired girl answered. "I'd hate to change my plans."

"Aw..." Bonnie muttered, disappointed. She whispered to Via, "Who are we gonna ask now?"

"Well... we'll just look around," she whispered back.

The two left the house and walked back towards Inkopolis Square. They stopped in front of the tower and looked around. Bonnie then saw Fable, sitting on a bench outside it. The violet-haired inkling was playing a game on her phone.

"Hey, Fable!" Octavia called.

Fable paused to look up at them, and then she stood up. "Hi!"

"We were wondering..." the orange-haired girl started.

"Would you like to come to the Arowana Fashion Show with us?" the blue-haired girl finished the question. She waved the tickets around.

"When is it?" the fair-skinned inkling asked.

"Tomorrow," the bronze-skinned inkling replied, "after school."

"Sorry," she started, "but I have choir practice tomorrow." Bonnie pouted at her response. "If I didn't, I'd love to come!"

"It's OK," the beige-skinned inkling told Fable. "We understand." She looked over at Via. "Right?"

"Right," affirmed her friend.

"I'll see you guys at school tomorrow!" she exclaimed as they departed.

"You too," Octavia replied back. After they went deeper into the street, she let out a sigh. "Who're we gonna ask now?"

"We can ask that jellyfish," the girl with the double bun suggested, pointing to one wearing a white tee. She walked up to them, kneeled down, and asked, "Do you wanna go to the Arowana Fashion Show?" The jellyfish shook their head, and Bonnie frowned in response. She stood up and shrugged towards Via.

"WAIT!" the wavy-haired girl suddenly exclaimed. "I got an idea!"

"What?" the other asked.

"We go ask Maya!"

"Maya?" The funny-looking inkling was in Bonnie's math class—she never seemed too keen on the latest trends.

"Y'know... black-and-purple hair, blue eyes..."

"Yeah I know what she looks like; I was just surprised you brought her up."

"Oh..." For a moment, Via looked a little disappointed, but she quickly perked back up again. "So, anyways, we go and drive to her house..."

"Can't we ask her tomorrow at school?" Bonnie interrupted with a question.

"But what if she isn't here tomorrow?" she argued. "Not gonna lie, though, I wanna see if she cleaned it up, too."

"What does...?" The kid with the double bun shook her head. "Y'know, let's go."

The two inklings travelled back to the orange-haired girl's house, where they took her car and drove it down towards Perry's mansion. They stopped in front of a building in slightly-worse shape than the ones around it. Scents of freshly-cut grass lingered in the air. The porch of it appeared to have been repaired lately, the wood looking sharp with a new coat of paint. Octavia's mouth formed an 'o' when she saw it, and as soon as she parked it, she leaped out of the car and ran up the steps. Bonnie trailed behind her, hands clasped. The girl eagerly rang the doorbell.

"It is open!" she heard Maya yell from inside.

Via turned the doorknob and opened it, accompanied with a creak. They stepped inside the house, where they saw the funny-looking inkling lounging on a couch, reading a book. Her dull blue eyes looked up the pages and met the eyes of the newcomers.

Maya turned her body so she would take up less room and then patted the cushion of the couch. "Come join me," she requested.

The two girls sat down, Octavia next to Maya, Bonnie next to Octavia. "What book you're reading?" the beige-skinned inkling asked, leaning over to see the cover.

"It is called, 'The Plight of the General'." She focused her eyes on the pages again. "It is about the struggles of General Octin during the Great Turf War."

"General Octin..." Bonnie murmured, searching her memory. "He's an Octarian general, right?"

"Why're you reading about him?" asked Via.

"I like the history," she replied. She put a purple bookmark in it and closed it before turning to the orange-haired inkling. "You know, since I meeted you, I have wondered why your parents named you 'Octavia'."

"Me too," the other admitted. "But, my dad is a historian." She chuckled, lying back into the cushions. "I guess he was looking into the Great Turf War when he had me."

"To speak of historians..." Maya flipped to the beginning of the book, looking at the copyright information. "Is the first name of your dad Dwight?"

Via bit her lip. "Yeah... why?"

"I believe he wrote this book." The funny-looking inkling showed her the cover of it. It depicted an illustration of the Octarian general, the title and author in bold letters. "Published 2002."

"'Dwight Bobatal'," she read. "Yeah, that's my dad alright."

"I knew your dad had a few books," Bonnie commented, looking at the wavy-haired girl, "but I didn't know he wrote something on the Great Turf War."

"I think I remember him telling me about that book," she started to explain. "He said he wanted to research more into the Octarians during that war, so he picked out one person of importance, researched them, and shared his findings. The end result was a controversial book." She shivered. "Sometimes I go get the mail, and I see a hate letter to my dad in it."

_Ouch..._ The blue-haired girl figured the controversy was the reason why she didn't know about it. Still, she couldn't help but feel bad for him. _I wonder if he released it today, how things would be different._

"Well... please tell your dad I like this book, then." Maya smiled. "It is well written."

"I will," Via promised. "But that's not why we're here."

"Oh?" The girl tilted her head, curious.

Bon-Bon pulled the tickets out of her pocket. "We accidentally bought an extra ticket for the Arowana Fashion Show tomorrow," she explained.

"How do you 'accidentally' buy an extra ticket?" she requested, her tone becoming darker.

"We..." She pulled her knees to her chest in fear of backlash from Maya.

Octavia put a hand on the beige-skinned girl's shoulder and finished, "We forgot Geneva was on vacation, alright?" Her orange eyes met Bonnie's, and she smiled.

"Who is Geneva?" the funny-looking inkling with light brown skin asked.

"Geneva's our friend!" Via exclaimed. "She might look mean at first glance, but she's actually a very nice squid."

The blue-haired inkling brought her knees down and pulled out her phone. "Here's a picture." She pulled up a group photo of the Rainbow Squids, pointing to the fair-skinned girl in the very front. Taken the day of their last turf war with Geneva, they had all super-jumped on top of some buildings to snap it. While most everyone had a large grin on their face, Bonnie wore a sheepish smile, while Perry, not surprisingly, was sticking his tongue out at the camera. Alexis even tried joining in, squeezing in on the bottom of the picture. The green-haired inkling had sent it to them all through a group chat. It was the last reminder of Geneva, for now, anyways.

Maya's eyes had widened upon seeing the photo. "I think I have seen her before," she confessed.

"Where?" Octavia suddenly inquired.

"Ehh..." She scratched the back of her head. "I do forget."

Both inklings sighed. "But, still," Via continued. "You wanna go with us?"

"I suppose," the funny-looking inkling agreed. "I do not have anything else planned."

"Yay!" she cheered.

Bonnie handed a ticket to Maya. "See you tomorrow."

"You are going to leave?" she questioned.

"Umm..." the blue-haired girl muttered.

"Can you not stay for a while?"

"Umm..."

"It is lonely."

"Ohh, alright..." Bonnie conceded.

Maya smiled. "Would you like tea?"

"I like coffee better," Octavia protested.

"I do not drink coffee," she pointed out.

"Oh, fine," she grumbled. "I'll drink leaf water." The other two stared at the wavy-haired girl, unimpressed. "Hey, I'm not wrong!" she defended.

The girl with light brown skin went and fetched them all hot green tea. She turned on the TV in the living room, and they all watched live turf war matches while they drank their tea. Alexis even popped up in one of the matches, garnering loud cheers from Octavia. Several hours past, and at nightfall, Via and Bonnie decided to leave.

"Bye, Maya!" Octavia exclaimed.

"Don't forget about the fashion show!" Bonnie added.

"Do not worry," she called back. "I have a good memory."

* * *

The next day, the reception at Arowana Mall was packed. The two girls leaned against the wall, waiting for their funny-looking friend to arrive. Soon, they heard footsteps approaching them. They looked up, but instead of seeing Maya, they saw two familiar octolings instead. Two familiar octolings Bonnie did not want to see.

Even though Yvonne normally wore an eggplant mountain coat, today she wore a custom painted F-3—the same jacket Asher wore the day of the tournament. She recalled the yellow-haired girl's curiosity over the jacket and figured she bought it some time afterwards. A squid hairclip was stuck to the left side of her hair, and she wore N-pacer Au shoes today. A dumb smile was plastered on her face as she curled one tentacle in her pigtail around her finger.

Iris still wore a squash headband, though her other clothes were different. She impatiently tapped her deepsea leather boots on the ground, the shoes shining in the fluorescent light. Matching her blue boots was a Firefin navy sweat she wore around her body. Interestingly, the fair-skinned girl also had a white scarf draped around her neck. A tag with Splash Mob's logo could be seen hanging off of it. She folded her arms as she smirked at the two inklings.

"You here," Iris sneered. "Why?"

"...The same reason as you," Bon-Bon replied. "The Arowana Fashion Show... It's today, y'know."

"Why are you not in the line?" Yvonne asked, cocking her head slightly to the side.

"We're waiting for a friend," Octavia replied.

Blue eyes searched the area, and in the corner of her eye she saw Maya, walking around aimlessly. "Hey, Maya!" Bonnie called to get her attention. The funny-looking inkling stopped and looked around. The wavy-haired inkling seemed to notice her arrival and started waving her arms around. Quickly, she ran over to them and greeted them.

"_Her?_" the octoling with indigo hair chided.

Maya looked over at Iris, then the two inklings, her mouth gaping.

"You know her, Iris?" Via asked.

"Yes," she confirmed.

"She stealed my brush one time," Maya spoke up.

"I the give it to the back."

"No, there was several people searching for it. They finded it in your quarters."

"I had will of give it to you if they no did find it first."

"You know, I would love it if we got in line just about now," Bonnie interrupted.

"Agree, I want a seat good," Yvonne concurred.

The two girls gave glares at each other before returning their attention to their respective companions. They nodded, and they got in line to enter the room where the fashion show will be held. Iris and Maya continued arguing while the others watched them awkwardly. When they got to the ticket counter, they simply gave their tickets to them, and they were promptly let in. The two groups ended up sitting next to each other on the back end of the auditorium.

Bonnie looked over at Iris and Yvonne, and suddenly, a memory from the tournament came to mind. The blue-haired inkling was carrying the Rainmaker down Walleye Warehouse, her watchful eyes scanning the eyes for any member of the opposing team. It was a clear path to the goal—she could win this for the team. With newfound confidence, she had raced towards the hill, but then, a roller slammed down on her. She splatted, and immediately Octa Prisma had claimed the Rainmaker. Giovanni grabbed the Rainmaker, and with the full support of his team, he easily made his way to the goal. The Rainbow Squids had him surrounded, but it was too late as the Rainmaker set in place. From the hill, Gio began laughing, and he was quickly joined by Iris.

Hearing their scorching laughter made her feel like a failure—she had failed to take the win for her team, and now everyone would suffer because of it. For the next half hour or so, it was like she was a ghost. Her body simply dragged her through the events of the day, her mind tired and begging for rest. All of her words felt empty as she spoke. For the most part, all she could do was look at her New Squiffer. One of the few things that brought her comfort.

"Bonnie?" Octavia muttered in her ear. "You OK?"

"I'm fine," she assured.

Someone tapped on the microphone, and everyone brought their attention to the sea anemone standing on the edge of the gleaming catwalk. "Welcome to the forty-fourth biannual Arowana Fashion Show!" she announced. "We have quite the line-up today from your favorite brands." She pulled out some cards and read, "First up, we have the daring new stars of fashion, Annaki!"

The crowd cheered as a jellyfish model walked out on stage. Matching the jellyfish's color, they wore an elongated prune parashooter and an Annaki mask, doing a few poses before walking back behind the stage. Another model came out, this one an inkling. The emphasis seemed to be on her shoes, which were studded with metal adornments. The boots matched the bracelet that came with the Annaki polpo-pic tee. The crowd ogled over the shoes in curiosity. Bonnie wasn't all too interested herself—but if a trend came off of this showing, then she might just have to buy them. The inkling model struck a pose in such a way that highlighted the shoes, remaining for a few seconds. She then turned around and strutted backstage.

"Next, this brand has exploded in popularity over the last few years with their sportswear. You guessed it—it's Enperry!"

The jellyfish model that came out also wore a face mask—this one the King mask. Covering their eyes were some sunglasses with the Enperry logo on the frame. Once they were at the end of the catwalk, they stretched, highlighting the white King tank they also wore. They wore multiple bracelets, each a different color. The jellyfish saluted goodbye and walked backstage. The next model to walk out was a spider crab, not unlike Bisk, the operator of Shella Fresh. They wore a variety of shoes of their many legs, all tennis shoes of many different colors. The crab also wore a slash King tank. They struck various moves before heading back.

"Our next brand is a classic—it's SquidForce, coming down the runway!"

The next jellyfish wore rather simple clothing, sporting only a white tee. Very few people cheered, with most being disappointed. The jellyfish looked around nervously and quickly left. They were replaced by another jellyfish model, wearing more interesting clothing. Their shirt was patterned with the SquidForce logo, and they wore a Squid facemask as well. A painter's mask hung off of their arm, which they held up while striking a bold pose. They retired to backstage, and out came another inkling model. He wore a camo layered LS. Once he arrived at the end of the walkway, he took the shirt he wore off, revealing another shirt underneath. He continued taking off shirts until he was down to his last shirt, where he then bowed. Some jellyfish came along to pick up the shirts as he walked back.

"This brand is especially known for its outdoor wear. Please welcome Inkline to the stage!"

This jellyfish wore a chilly mountain coat and a Yamagirl beanie. Around the collar of the coat was a thick scarf, which Bonnie found fitting. Once again, they struck more poses before walking back up the runway.

At this time, Bonnie was trying not to fall asleep. She rested her head in her hand, leaning back in her chair and throwing her legs up on the seat in front of her. Though she liked looking in fashion magazines and seeing the latest outfits online, attending actual fashion shows seemed boring at times. This one seems to be rather underwhelming this time. But, it would be rude to leave in the middle of the show. All she could do was just sit here and wait.

"Hey, Bon-Bon," Octavia whispered, prodding her arm. "Look at this!"

"Huh?" The blue-haired girl put her feet down and leaned forward in her seat, looking at the model on the catwalk. The inkling girl wore a Takoroka windcrusher, some shutter shades, and crazy arrows. She pulled the shutter shades down the bridge of her nose, highlighting the bold eyelashes she sported, and gave a toothy smirk. The crowd went wild. A few people up in the front threw flowers onto the catwalk, while Bonnie heard someone else scream, 'I love you!'.

"And that's the end of the Arowana Fashion Show!" the sea anemone announced. "Thank you all for coming, and we hope to see you in the summer!" The lights in the auditorium flickered on, and multiple people got up from their seats.

"That is it?" Maya muttered.

"I so-so want to buy the glasses now!" Yvonne exclaimed. "It look the fresh on the Takoroka girl."

"Me too," agreed Iris.

Bonnie closed her eyes, smiling, and adjusted her glasses. "Looks like I'm gonna have to get out my contacts, then."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Octavia asked. "There's a ton of stores in this mall. We can buy one right now!"

"You're right, let's go!"

"You wanna come, Maya?" Via asked the funny-looking inkling. She nodded. "Great!"

The three ran out of the reception, towards one of Takoroka's exclusive shops in the mall. As expected, it was packed, and shutter shades were selling out fast. The girls tried on various shades, all with the company's logo somewhere on the frame. They walked out of the shop with new shades and smiles on their faces.

If anything, at least one new trend came out of the fashion show.


	35. A Blast to the Past

_Inigo's PoV_

After school one day, Octavia, Alexis, and Inigo decided to shop in a video store to look for a movie to watch for the night. All the Rainbow Squids were coming over to Inigo's place, and their plan was to just make some popcorn, squeeze onto the comfy couch, and relax as the scenes flicked by. As video stores became increasingly rare, they decided it was best to go here today so they wouldn't make a permanent investment.

As they scored the aisles for something interesting, something caught Inigo's eye. He stopped and backed up to the compelling case to absorb the details on it. The DVD cover depicted the Squid Sisters holding their signature weapons, the Hero Roller and the Hero Charger. It was titled, 'Battles with the Squid Sisters', with the subtitle being, 'Yep, every single battle!'.

"Whatcha looking at?" Via asked, backing up to join him in his examination of the cover. Her eyes widened as she read it more. "Oh! 'Battles with the Squid Sisters'? I didn't even know they recorded them!"

"So that means…" Inigo started, trailing off as the realization hit him. "I'm in one of these clips."

"Wait, you battled with the Squid Sisters once?!" Alexis burst out in surprise. "I didn't know this!"

"Yeah." The inkling with indigo hair glanced off to the side and put a steady hand on his cheek. "With Geneva. We'd only been dating for a little while when we battled with them."

"I remember you telling us about it," the wavy-haired girl remarked. She nudged her sister. "You should have seen the look on Roy's face when they told them!"

"Could you tell me the story, Inigo?" the short-haired inkling asked, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Please?"

"Alright, alright. So, it was a few weeks before the Callie vs. Marie Splatfest…"

_Hands clasped together tightly, the couple entered one of the empty elevators in Inkopolis Tower with their weapons in their free hands. They only needed a smile to assure each other that no matter what happens, they won't let defeat faze them. After a few moments of staring at each other intently, they burst out in laughter, letting go of each other's hands to get a hold on the railing. Inigo could see the sparkle in Geneva's green eyes as she looked up and beamed at him._

_A little later, some more inklings filled the elevator. Some were cocky, while others hung off to the side, refusing to talk to anyone. Regardless, Inigo and Geneva remained in their own little bubble, passionately chatting with each other._

_A silence soon fell over the room when two figures with dazzling outfits and starry yellow eyes walked in. The one with long black hair threw a Hero Roller over her shoulder, smiling confidently as she waved at the inklings. The other one, with short grey hair, gave an awkward smile as she set her Hero Charger down to the ground like a cane and waved. Inigo could recognize these two girls from anywhere—they were Callie and Marie from the one and only Squid Sisters._

_"Hey, squids!" Callie greeted. "Ready to have some fun?"_

_"Callie!" screamed one of the social inklings, a boy with orange hair hidden under a straw boater. He grabbed her arm and kissed her hand. "I'm your biggest fan!"_

_A look of discomfort flashed on the black-haired idol's face before she bubbled, "Aw, thanks! You staying fresh?"_

_"Heck yeah I am!"_

_"Hey, Marie," greeted another inkling, a girl with navy blue hair and Octoglasses situated on the top of her head. "I just wanna say, I'm a really big fan of your music."_

_"Thanks," thanked the grey-haired idol. "I appreciate it."_

_"Can you sign my Slosher, Marie?" asked another girl wearing a snorkeling mask, holding her Slosher out in front of her._

_"I could, if I had a pen," she remarked._

_"Aw…"_

_The elevator doors close and it started to descend, soon leading to the grates below them to open up so they could travel to their location. During the time waiting, the other inklings pounded the Squid Sisters with questions, some general, some more personal than others. Inigo himself wanted to ask a question, but Geneva simply grabbed his hand and shook her head no. Following along with her decision, he sighed and leaned again the wall, fiddling around with his Carbon Roller while he waited._

"I actually don't remember much of the battle myself," the Inigo in the present day remarked. "I know it was in Walleye Warehouse… and that we won… but that's the most I can think of right now."

"Did you guys kiss?" the younger inkling suddenly popped in.

"No… that was later," he replied.

_"Aw, man, we gotta return these shirts now," Inigo grumbled, looking down at the Team Marie Splatfest Tee he was wearing. _The last time I'll ever wear this.

_"I mean, we could smuggle them," Geneva teased. "Or buy them off the black market."_

_"What, no! Can't we be law-abiding citizens?"_

_"I'm joking, Inigo. I'm not stealing these."_

_"Oh, okay. Good."_

_The couple started walking towards the t-shirt collectors next to a voting booth that was now forever dim. There was a long line of inklings leading to them, with some wearing their Splatfest tees and some already have taken them off. Some were crying, some were in good spirits. Though Inigo was sad to see the Splatfests go, at least he didn't have the nerve to cry in public._

_As they got closer and closer, Geneva suddenly whispered to him, "Before we turn these in… I wanna do something."_

_"What? What do ya-" Before Inigo could finish his sentence, the girl's lips suddenly pressed against his, catching him off guard. Warmth spread throughout his body, and he led Geneva into an embrace as he closed his indigo eyes. For what seemed like an eternity, it seemed like nothing could penetrate their own little bubble as they were absorbed with each other. When their mouths departed, they slowly opened their eyes and gazed at each other._

_"That… was amazing," Inigo breathed, his heart racing._

_"I know." The green-haired inkling caressed his cheek. "You're a better kisser than I thought."_

_"I am?" For his first kiss, he wasn't expecting someone to say that to him._

_Geneva nodded. "You are, and keep being a good kisser, would ya?"_

"You're smiling."

Alexis's words brought Inigo out of his thoughts, and his expression turned dumbfounded as he looked down at the bronze-skinned girl. "O-Oh… was I?"

"Yeah, you were," she confirmed.

He looked away from the sisters. "I was just thinking about… something."

"Kissing aside…" Octavia started. "Maybe we should rent this, then." She picked up the case. "Maybe that can jog your memory about that battle."

"Via, we still have a movie to pick!" Alexis argued.

"Can't we get both?" the indigo-haired inkling suggested.

"…Good point," the short-haired girl muttered.

"Alright, we're getting this." She put the case under her arm, and then the three continued to search the video store for a movie to watch. Once they rented both DVDs, they traveled to Inigo's house and opened the 'Battles with the Squid Sisters' case to see several DVDs inside, much to their dismay. Octavia paged through the DVDs until she found the last one, containing battles from March of 2016 to the end of the Callie vs. Marie Splatfest. She took it out and slid it into the DVD player on a shelf on the table Inigo's TV was situated on.

Soon, a screen flickered to life, opening with the Squid Sisters' signature pose before cutting to a standstill and displaying a selection screen. They opened the scene selection and clicked through the pages of the selection until they found one scene depicting the Squid Sisters with Inigo and Geneva. Octavia pressed a button on the remote, and the screen went black before cutting to a display explaining what game mode the battle was in. It was Turf War, of course. At the same time, the camera panned over Walleye Warehouse, and the fair-skinned boy could catch glimpses of squids on both ends of the map.

A few seconds later, the screen depicted both sides changing into their kid forms. Starting with the camera on Callie, the match begun, and their team began inking the surrounding area, complete with background music, specifically 'Hooked' by Hightide Era. The black-haired idol immediately slammed her Hero Roller onto the ground and pushed it along, creating a trail of orange ink behind her. She took a back road in Walleye Warehouse, but her further exploits were unseen as the camera panned over to Marie. From one of the crates she had already managed to travel to, she began charging up the Hero Charger. A squid dove into the ink behind her, swam past her, and emerged and took the shape of Geneva as she jumped down to the concrete floor.

Immediately, the girl with the Slosher appeared, flinging ink across the map. Despite pointing at the ground, Marie kept a watchful eye on her, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. A second or two later, she snapped up and fired, piercing right through her and splatting her.

"Nice!" complemented Callie as she rolled by. The grey-haired idol simply winked and gave a thumbs-up. The camera then focused on the black-haired idol once more, who was prepared to ambush someone. The boy wearing a straw boater walked down a rubber ramp to the main area, Permanent Inkbrush in hand. He started swinging it when she emerged from the orange ink and took him down within one hit. At the camera, she gave a gleaming smile.

All of a sudden, the beeping of seekers could be heard off-screen. Callie whipped around to see a barrage of bombs rushing towards her. The source was quickly found to be the girl wearing Octoglasses, who wielded a Carbon Roller Deco. She was cackling as she launched her seekers. The idol started jumping over them, but soon she lost her step and tripped, being splatted by the last bomb launched.

The camera changed focus to Marie again. She made a small gasp as she witnessed the bomb rush. After Callie was splatted, the girl with Octoglasses slammed her own roller down and began pushing it along. The grey-haired idol began charging up her Hero Charger, and seconds later, she let out a piercing beam, splatting the girl with the roller. She jumped off the crate and began lurking around.

On Callie's end, she took another side route to the center—though it was the right route, not the left route, this time. At the end of the hallway popped out a newcomer—a girl wielding an Aerospray RG. She just about fainted upon sighting the idol. She stared her briefly before moving on. Once the girl was out of range of her roller, she slammed it down again, moving it along. The scream of the girl wielding the Slosher could be heard as Callie rolled her over. When she had arrived in the central area, she painted the side of the crate and jumped onto it. The boy wielding the Inkbrush ran by again, so she jumped off the crate and prepared her Hero Roller.

She was about to slam her roller down on him when a beam of orange ink pierced through his chest. He exploded into a pile of ink, and the camera panned over to the source of the beam—Marie. She had emerged from one of the alleyways and proceeded to take the boy down. Inigo imagined she had a smile, maybe even a smirk, on her face as she walked back up to Callie.

"_MariiiEeEe!_" a younger Inigo yelled off-screen, his voice cracking. Some ripples went by the two idols, and then an inkling emerged in the ink in front of them. "Can I help you? Please?" The present-day Inigo felt heat creep up his face from second-hand embarrassment.

"We're fine, but thanks for asking," replied the grey-haired inkling. The boy with the ponytail threw his arms out in front of him and let out a groan.

"You sound so... young," Alexis commented.

"I was 15 then!" Inigo defended.

"You're 16," she said. On the TV screen, the girl with the Slosher appeared and threw ink at the three of them, and they all splatted.

"I'm almost 17," he pointed out.

"OK, you win."

When Callie, Marie, and Inigo respawned, they all immediately ran off the spawn point, back towards the main area. The camera was focused on Callie again. She stuck a suction bomb to the pile of boxes before running off. In the background, Geneva was holding off the enemy team quite decently. The girl with the Carbon Roller Deco popped out behind one crate and swung her roller. She jumped backwards, successfully dodging the swing, though some blue ink got on her Urchins jersey. Suddenly, her hair glowed orange, and in an instant, she began chucking burst bombs everywhere. The opponent with the roller was caught off guard, and she was quickly splatted with two direct hits.

Marie's perspective included her resting her back against a wall in the corner, aiming at the grate above her. The inkling with the Aerospray stepped onto it and started transforming into a squid, but as soon as the idol fired her Hero Charger, she splatted. She spun her charger around and walked back out to the main area, where she proceeded to witness an Inkstrike land right in the middle of the stage. A vortex of blue ink swirled in front of her, and Inigo heard someone scream.

"Callie!" she cried. She quickly fired a straight line of ink in front of her and swam to the pile of boxes in the middle. She looked over to see Geneva's gear disappear into a puddle of blue ink. "Callie...?"

"I'm fine!" called the black-haired inkling. She popped up from on top of a box on the side and waved. The camera panned back over her, just in time to see the Inigo on the TV emerge from the small path near the base. He saw himself mutter something, but he couldn't make out what it was. The inkling with the ponytail proceeded to start covering up the ink that resulted from the Inkstrike again. "Hmm..." Callie murmured. She made her way to behind the stack of boxes in the very center of the stage and pulled out a giant Killer Wail. She aimed it and a few seconds later, it let out a loud screech as an orange beam fired across the map.

"Booyah!" everyone cheered.

There was at least one survivor of the Killer Wail, however, as the boy with the Inkbrush swept around the corner again and started attacking Marie. She turned around and started firing her charger rapidly, but she was quickly splatted. The camera changed to the grey-haired idol's perspective once she respawned, where she proceeded to super-jump to her cousin. Geneva had returned to the scene, where she was quick in covering up enemy turf.

The enemy team began to group up and push forward, using all of their firepower to ink as much turf as they can. Inigo saw himself swim up to them, emerging with his Carbon Roller prepared, but he was splatted before he could even get a hit on them. Meanwhile, Marie perched on the pile of boxes again, aiming down on them. She was about to fire her shot when the girl with the Slosher started flinging ink at her again. Her charger fired up at the sky as she fled, but alas, another bucket full of blue ink got her splatted again.

Callie and Geneva were hiding out behind a wall, watching their opponents push forward. The black-haired girl put her roller down and took a few steps forward before the inkling with green eyes grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back. She shook her head and focused on the other team again. Inigo had super-jumped to his then-girlfriend and stood rather ominously behind her. Geneva looked behind her shoulder and jumped, fully turning around to face him.

"I-Inigo!" she stuttered frantically, her face turning red. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry, sorry," he apologized.

Present-day Inigo groaned and gripped his head. _What was I thinking back then?_ he asked himself. _Scaring Geneva like that..._

Marie then super-jumped to the three squids. "Oh, we're having a party?"

"No, we're gonna do a special attack!" Callie corrected cheerfully.

"A special attack?" the younger Inigo inquired.

"It's a thing," the grey-haired idol replied.

"Me and the Squid Sisters are going to attack them," Geneva explained, adjusting her beanie.

"Do I get a part in this?" the boy with the ponytail asked.

"You... can be a distraction." Marie patted the boy on the back. "Go get 'em, tiger shark."

"Don't worry about it." Geneva placed a peck on his cheek, and with a blush, Inigo rubbed it. "You'll do great."

He nodded, put his Carbon Roller to the ground, and began pushing it. To Inigo's surprise, the match panned over to his own point of view. He moved in a zig-zagged fashion, winding around the other inklings and confusing them. Eventually, his hair began to glow, and he pulled out an Inkzooka. He managed to fire one whirlwind of ink before stepping into an Ink Mine and splatting.

The camera now simply panned over the other team, who were rather scattered thanks to the distraction Inigo provided. Suddenly, voices began to sound.

"One!" Callie prepared a powerful swing of her Hero Roller.

"Two!" Marie began running forward with a full charge.

"Three!" Geneva rushed towards them with her Splattershot.

Once the last girl finished speaking, all of them fired the most powerful attacks their main weapons could muster at once. Callie jumped up into the air and slammed her roller down, sending a huge wave of orange ink towards the group of inklings. Marie fired a high-speed shot of ink that bounced off the crates until it reached the target, losing strength with each bounce. Geneva swept her shooter across the field, firing it as fast as it could manage and hitting all of the inklings. All four members of the team were splatted, leaving the trio the entire map to cover. Loud cheers were edited in the background.

"Wow..." Inigo breathed. A memory from that day resurfaced—he remembered walking up to his teammates and telling them that they were superfresh for wiping out the entire team with one attack. But seeing a recording of it? It somehow made him more in awe of the feat. _They all knew what to do, and they did it._ He was always under the impression that Geneva had no prior knowledge of the special attack, but now, it seemed like she had done it before. Many times, in fact.

The team was quick to cover up the map, and then the whistle blew. The screen cut to an overview of a map, and stock footage of Judd appeared on the screen. He did a little dance before striking out an orange flag to the left of the screen. Next, Callie and Marie appeared, doing victory dances, alongside two inklings resembling and wearing the same gear as Geneva and Inigo. The inkling girl dressed up as Geneva wore a standard short beanie—the green-haired inkling normally donned a short beanie made with darker thread—while the inkling boy dressed up as Inigo lacked the indigo-haired inkling's cowlick. The camera zoomed in on the Squid Sisters and proceeded to display the statistics of the battle. Callie and Marie were tied for the most squids splatted, while Inigo had splatted the most.

"It's superfresh the Squid Sisters are so good at turf wars," Octavia commented. "That's why I like them so much! They don't just sing; they kick butt while looking good, too."

"So does Off the Hook!" Alexis remarked.

"Well, I like them too," she muttered.

Inigo laid back on the couch and smiled. He watched the screen fade to black, and then another match popped up—this one in Mahi-Mahi Resort. _Getting right to it, huh?_ The same tsunami that closed down the Museum d'Alfonsino a while back had also flooded the resort. It was closed down for repairs, though when it had reopened over the summer, most inklings had moved on to different spots for ink battles. Sometimes Inigo wished he could play there again, but perhaps it was for the best—the new maps brought a lot of things to the table. _I guess we could watch one more match..._

"Wow, Geneva's good."

At the new voice, the three inklings turned around to see Giovanni, pressing against the back of the couch. His head resting on his gloved hand, his eyes drifted over to them, and he gave a smirk.

"How did you get in here?!" Alexis demanded.

"You leave the door open," he answered. "I also did some following."

"Any particular reason why you decided to watch this with us?" Inigo soon asked.

The octoling snickered. "There is no particular reason."

He doubted his words, based on his expression. "Do you know something?"

"Do you?"

"Of course! I know her better than anyone!"

"Answer his question," the short-haired inkling snapped.

"No need to be so pushy," Octavia tried to quell her.

"OK, let me try again..." the boy with the ponytail started. "Do you know something about Geneva?"

"Perhaps," Gio teased.

He took this as a 'yes'. "How?"

"I never said I knew a thing," he replied.

"Yes, but it was implied."

"My point is still standing."

Inigo groaned. _This is getting nowhere._

"OK, Gio," Octavia spoke up. "Please, stop being vague. It's kinda creepy."

"That, and the fact that you followed us here," Alexis added.

"Creepy?" the octoling mused.

"Y'know: disturbing, unsettling, causing discomfort, et cetera..." the wavy-haired inkling elaborated.

"I no do think I am to be creepy," Giovanni confessed. "It is simple... I like to gather information."

"Still creepy..." the short-haired girl muttered.

"Umm..." Inigo bit his lip, nervous. "Do you do the same thing with your friends? Like Octa Prisma?"

"I..." Losing his gusto, the green-haired boy looked down to the floor and scratched his head. "I... No...?"

"OK, I'm gonna say no. Why don't you do this with your friends?"

"They are my friends; they would not to like it."

"Are we your friends?"

"You are draw to the idea of friends... The between an inkling and an octoling. It is silly."

"The Great Turf War happened a hundred years ago!" Octavia butted into the conversation. "This is now! Can't we all be friends?"

"I was raise to think inklings and Octarians are enemies," Giovanni argued, frowning.

"But that's what you were _raised_ to think," she pointed out. "We're in Inkopolis, and you're not working for the Octarians anymore! You can do whatever you want!"

Finally, the octoling sighed, slumping on the couch. "It is not easy," he admitted. "I keep to tell me that I'm in the world of the inklings. But... I have not convinced me yet."

"So..." Inigo started. "Will you think about being friends with us? And not being creepy?"

He immediately straightened and glared at him with his green eyes. "I not promise anything." With that, he promptly turned around and left the room. A few seconds later, the fair-skinned inkling heard his front door open and close shut.

"Finally, he's gone," Alexis said, relieved.

"Honestly, I don't know what to make of that," the boy with the ponytail concluded.

"Well, it's a start," Via assured. "Who knows? Maybe we'll actually be friends with Gio one day."

"I hope so," he agreed. "He doesn't seem like a bad kid. Just... super misguided."

"Moving on," the short-haired inkling interrupted, changing the subject. She stopped the video and then picked up the case for the movie. "Let's set this up; we don't want to keep the others waiting."

"OK," replied the older inklings. As they took the _Battles with the Idols_ DVD out of the player, and the movie's DVD in, there was still something on Inigo's mind.

_What_ did _Gio know about Geneva?_

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! I had this idea in my head for a while, and I'm glad to have finally executed it. Fun fact: it was only the main battle I had to make sure I finished for today. Everything else was written during the hiatus between seasons 1 and 2. Yes, including that ending, with Gio's appearance. Hope you guys liked this chapter, and stay tuned for the next as always! Branchwing, out!**


	36. Heart on Your Sleeve

_Perry's PoV_

"The theme's Sweater vs. Sock, huh?" Bonnie commented. "Could have been better, not gonna lie."

"I mean, it could have been worse," Yuri piped up. "My siblings and I went to a carnival and saw some lady the other day. She told me that somewhere, in an alternative universe, there was a Splatfest about toilet paper preferences."

"Now that's weird," Via admitted. "By the way, what are your toilet paper preferences?" she asked with a smirk.

"We are not getting into that," Roy protested.

"Ah, c'mon, Roy," Perry said. "Have some fun every once in a while."

"...You squids know I was jokin', right?" Octavia pointed out.

"Of course, of course!" Perry lied. _But I still have a point, right...?_

"Anyways..." Roy rested his legs on the table and pulled up a green sock on one leg. "I think Team Sock is definitely the way to go."

"Don't ya like sweaters?" the inkling with spiky bangs asked. Perry was on Team Sweater, of course—he just loved showing off his ugly Squidmas sweaters.

"No," he grumbled. "I always put on my Squidsmas list, 'DON'T BUY UGLY SWEATERS'."

"Maybe I should try that," Alexis mused. She fidgeted with the green bracelet that came with the Team Sock tee. "My cousins keep buying me them every year, and it's annoying."

"I thought you liked them," the wavy-haired girl bleated. True to her alignment with Team Sweater, she was wearing a sweater made from white wool under her Splatfest tee.

"Did you..." her sister started.

"Anyways!" Via interrupted, standing up from her chair and striking a pose. "I'm itchin' for battle."

"Me too." Yuri stood up as well. A light briefly shined on the green tee he was wearing.

Her arms fell at the spiky-haired boy's words. "But... we're not on the same team."

"I know," he replied. "Doesn't mean I can't battle, too."

"Wait," Inigo spoke up suddenly. "How about we fight against each other?"

"Good idea, Inigo!" Yuri beamed.

"Who'll be Team Sock member #4, then?" the pale-skinned boy piped up.

"I'll call Asher," the inkling with the ponytail replied. He pulled out his indigo cellphone and proceeded to punch some numbers in.

"_Asher?_" Roy muttered.

"Why him?" Alexis asked.

"Well..." Inigo's phone rang, and soon Perry could faintly hear Asher's voice on the other end. He held up a finger to silence them. "Hi, it's Inigo." He paused to let the other inkling speak. "Whaddya mean, 'How do I have your number?'? You gave it to me at the tournament!" He was silent once more. "I wanted to ask you if you wanted to battle with us." Another pause. "Sweater vs. Sock." After another moment of silence, the boy with the ponytail groaned. "Agh, alright. See ya another time." It cut off, and Inigo put his phone back into his pocket.

"He said 'no'?" Via assumed.

Inigo nodded. "He's out partying." He scratched his head. "And it sounds like he isn't in any state to battle, either." He shook his head. "He would choose Team Sweater, either way."

"Well, who're we gonna ask now?" Perry whined, slumping onto the table.

"Someone from school?" Bonnie suggested.

"We better get textin', then," the boy with indigo eyes remarked.

"I'll send out a post of Squidsagram," the wavy-haired girl announced, pulling out her phone.

Seconds later, everyone was glued to their phones. Perry's mind drifted to a certain girl—Lori. _Wonder what she's up to._ He was quick to ask her if she wanted to join them, and she sent him a reply in a similar speed—she couldn't. She explained she was with her friend, and they were getting ready to battle. He glanced between the Rainbow Squids briefly before deciding to text someone else.

His finger hovered over one of his good friend's name when suddenly Yuri exclaimed, "Yes!"

"Huh?" Everyone's attention snapped over to the spiky-haired inkling.

"Jade responded that she's coming here right now."

"Jade from physics?" Perry asked.

He nodded. "That's the one."

A few moments later, they heard footsteps running towards them, and they turned around to look at the newcomer. A dark-skinned inkling girl wearing a Team Sock tee sprinted towards them, the light reflecting off of her forest green hair that was tied up into a double bun. She was holding a N-ZAP '85 in her hands. As soon she reached the Rainbow Squids' table, she stopped to catch her breath.

"Whew..." Jade breathed. "I made it!"

"That was fast," Roy commented.

"Nice to see ya, Jade," the purple-eyed inkling greeted.

"Hey, Jade!" Yuri greeted as well.

"Hey," she greeted back. Her orange eyes scanned the group. "So, who's all on my team?" Roy, Yuri, and Alexis all moved towards them and exchanged greetings. "I didn't think you'd be on Team Sock, Yuri," she mused.

"Well..." Yuri scratched the back on his head. "I couldn't choose! So, I picked the team the idol I like best—Marina—supported."

"You like Marina best?"

The members of Team Sock turned around and parted for the other inklings to see. Standing there was Giovanni and his posse. The octoling with a mohawk, as well as Iris, were wearing Team Sock tees, while Oscar and Yvonne were wearing Team Sweater tees.

"Gio!" Alexis complained. "We told you not to stalk us!"

"No." He shook his head. "You do no say 'not to stalk us.'"

"It was implied!" she protested. "It's included in being creepy!" Jade muttered something to the short-haired inkling, but Perry couldn't make out what it was.

The dark-skinned girl scanned Octa Prisma for a moment and asked, "Didn't you squids win the Deca Tournament?"

"Yes," Iris replied, the corners of her mouth turning upward. "Thank you for knowing."

"Uhh... you're welcome?" she said. She turned back to the Rainbow Squids and shrugged.

"Changing the subject..." Perry interjected. "You excited for the Splatfest?" he eagerly asked the group of octolings.

"Obviously," Gio snickered. "It is the first of the Splatfests."

"It is the more of the liking of the first Splatfest of Giovanni," Oscar elaborated. "I-" He glanced between his teammates. "_We_ have did the Splatfests of before." The green-eyed octoling glared at the orange-eyed one, causing him to shrink back.

"Finally," started Giovanni, "I want battle you in this Splatfest later."

"We will be win also!" the girl with indigo eyes boasted.

"Until we meet!" Yvonne bubbled. "I no can wait!"

Octa Prisma ran off towards the Deca Tower, their laughter fading off into the distance. Everyone just looked at each other with bewildered on their faces, leaving them in silence.

Yuri was the first to break the silence. "Shall we go?"

Everyone agreed and headed off to the tower themselves. However, before they entered, Perry stopped in front of the stage where Off the Hook performed and began waving his hands wildly, calling Pearl's name. In return, Yuri began calling his friend's name, only to be ignored. After the duo finished singing their song, the pale-haired idol walked up to the edge of the stage and squatted down.

"Yo, whaddya want?" Pearl asked.

"Don't fall off!" Marina called.

"I'll be fine, 'Rina!" she called back. Her attention returned to Perry. "So?"

"I just wanted to say 'hi'!" he replied.

"Hiya," she said back. "Keep bein' fresh, aight?"

Perry seemed to smile from ear-to-ear. "I will!" he promised. He ran under the stage and did a little jump as he cheered. _She noticed me!_ he exclaimed silently. _And she called me fresh, too!_

"_Now_ can we battle?" Roy asked, crossing his arms.

"Of course!" The purple-eyed inkling put his hands on the tall boy's shoulders. "But did you hear that?"

"Pearl noticed you, we know," Octavia deadpanned.

"Exactly!" Perry ran up to the elevators. "Now, c'mon!"

The group entered an empty elevator. The door closed, and they began descending. The entire time, Perry was smiling because of the encounter with the idol. Now, he was quite motivated to battle and score a win for Team Sweater. The grate soon opened underneath the inklings' feet, and they slipped into it.

The squids on Team Sock spawned in a grassy, open area, underneath panels displaying a space background. In the distance was a pillar with two machines connected to it that spun around as it spread ink. Seconds later, everyone began firing their weapons. Perry decided to stay behind and ink the surrounding area this time around—he wanted enough points to summon his Sting Ray real quickly. He was quickly distracted by something spreading red ink, though. Snickering, he transformed into a squid and jumped to the edge of the ramp, allowing the machine to push him off. The drop was not much, though, much to his disappointment.

"Perry..." Bonnie stopped to look at him. "What are you doing?"

"Havin' fun!" He climbed back up the ramp and let the machine push him off again. "You try!"

"Erm... alright." She fired a small path in front of her with her Classic Squiffer and climbed up the ramp. The two inklings waited for the machine to come back and push them off again. Afterwards, Bonnie transformed back into a kid and shook her head. "I don't get it."

He sighed. "Alright, alright. I'll get back to inking."

A few sloshes later, the boy's hair started to glow red. He noticed one of the walls was being covered by yet another machine and climbed up it. On top of the platform, Perry pulled out the Sting Ray and began to fire it, aiming at the pillar. While he was firing it, a suction bomb landed right next to him, causing him to jump off the platform, back onto the grass. His special weapon ran out, much to his annoyance. The pale-skinned inkling began tossing ink everywhere with his Sloshing Machine again in hopes of gaining more turf for his team.

He threw an autobomb out in front of him. It stood there for a few moments before waddling away towards the pillar. Jade emerged from on top of a box on one of the machines and started running towards him, jumping over the bomb he sent in the process. He gasped and began targeting the dark-skinned girl. A cocky smile on her face, she fired her N-ZAP at him. Perry backed up, hoping to stay out of the shooter's short range. He threw out another bomb, but the next time he tried flinging ink at her, he found he was out of ink. He cursed and swam away before Jade could splat him.

Perry was back at the spawn point. _There's not much to this map, is there?_ he joked to himself. Once his ink tank was full again, he ran back down the ramp. He was surprised to see how much green covered the area. He threw his Sloshing Machine up into the air and caught it, thinking of what to do. Jade suddenly appeared from the corner, rushing up to him again while firing her N-ZAP '85. He tried catching his slosher, but it clumsly fell out of his hands, leaving him defenseless. He threw out one final bomb before he was splatted.

When he respawned, he noticed Bonnie had taken it upon herself to perch on one of the highest points of the stage and aim from there. Seconds later, a red mist surrounded both her and Perry, and in an instant, their bodies were covered in hardened ink.

"Fresh job, Bon-Bon!" the purple-eyed inkling called as he ran towards the middle again. He heard ink fly past him, so he risked looking over his shoulder to see the source. Once again, it was Jade. He threw yet another autobomb and dove into the ink trailing behind the machine spreading red ink in the center. At last, the dark-skinned girl was taken down by the bomb, splatting in a satisfying explosion of red. "Booyah!" Before he could further celebrate, the machine spreading green ink ran over him and splatted him.

To his relief, when Perry respawned next, they were no longer at a terrible disadvantage. Specks of green spotted the area, but his side was mostly red, at least. He super-jumped to Octavia, who camped out on top of one of the platforms that could be reached through the middlemost platform. She stood at the edge, flinging ink with her Octobrush down at the ground.

"Oh! Perry!" she gasped at his arrival. She stopped attacking momentarily, which allowed someone to toss a splat bomb on top of the building. They jumped off to avoid the explosion. He heard Via scream on the way down. Perry looked behind him to see who splatted her—it was none other than Roy. It was then he was pelted with bullets, with his attacker being none other than Yuri.

Once again, Perry was sent back to the spawn point. Only this time, he respawned alongside his wavy-haired friend.

"Well, that was a surprise," he teased.

"They only got us because I was distracted," she said, ignoring his comment. Her orange eyes then faced his. "Somethin' up, Perry? You've been acting more... silly, than usual."

"Yo, ya realize Pearl talked to me, 'ight?" He blushed. "It's like, the second time ever."

"Well, congrats, but we gotta focus on the battle," Via declared.

"She's right," added a new voice. Next to Perry was Inigo, his Carbon Roller thrown over his shoulders like usual. "It's still a Splatfest battle, so we gotta win!"

"For Team Sweater," Octavia added.

The purple-eyed boy smiled. "Right." He looked between his two friends. "For Team Sweater."

The inklings once again charged towards the battlefield, inking every spot of green they could find. Almost immediately after Perry approached the center pillar, Roy popped out of the ink, shooting his Luna Blaster. The boy jumped out of the way, clutching his arm as green ink seared it. He bit his lip to distract himself from the pain in order to toss a glob of ink at the inkling with his hair swept to the side. The tan-skinned boy covered his face, with the bulk of the red ink getting on his arms. This allowed Perry to score another direct hit on his friend and splat him.

The team pushed further into enemy territory, and soon, Perry could activate his special once more. Jumping on one of the platforms, he pulled out a Sting Ray again, this time aiming at the other team's spawn point. The barrier around it shimmered green as the giant beam made contact with it. He then aimed it lower, where he proceeded to pelt Yuri in the face with it.

Perry yelled an apology as his spiky-haired friend splatted. "Sorry!" His Sting Ray ran out of power, and now he could resume inking the area with the Sloshing Machine. Unfortunately for him, he spotted Alexis pulling out some Tenta Missiles, right on the spawn. She proceeded to fire them, and quickly were green missiles barreling towards him. He retreated back towards the pillar, missiles exploding behind him.

With everyone retreating, their opponents could now push back into their territory. Once again, Jade took the lead, with Ink Armor surrounding her teammates. She inked over the trail the machine spinning around the pillar created, but another one quickly covered it back up with red ink. Bonnie held up her Classic Squiffer and fired, piercing through the dark-skinned girl's ink armor. The hardened green ink shattered, and Jade winced. The girl with beige skin charged up her Squiffer again, and one shot later, the other girl was splatted.

Octavia made chase with her sister. Whenever the wavy-haired girl leaped with a swing of her brush prepared, Alexis always seemed to roll out of the way and shoot. Interestingly, she never seemed to land a hit on Via either, as the older sister ran in a zig-zag motion around the pillar. Perry decided to help out as he climbed on top of the box on one of the machines and started to hurl ink down at the dualie user. He landed one direct hit on her, but that did not faze her in the slightest. She simply just changed her focus on Perry. Alexis threw a burst bomb at him, knocking him over and causing him to fall to the ground. The machine ran him over and splatted him.

Perry wasted no time super-jumping back to the action. He launched towards Inigo, who was simply running along, covering paint with his roller. Roy suddenly jumped out at them, but with a vertical swing, the fair-skinned boy was able to take him out in one hit. His hair started to glow, and Inigo threw out a canister containing Ink Storm at one of the buildings in the middle. The purple-eyed boy watched the red cloud roll over the horizon, raining ink down on the battlefield.

All of a sudden, the two machines surrounding the pillar stopped moving. Everyone darted towards it in order to cover it up with ink. The result was a mess. People were being splatted left-and-right. Roy came rushing in with his Baller, and the explosion that resulted ended up splatting the remaining Team Sweater members present. When Perry respawned, he was horrified to see how far Team Sock had managed to push in. A few seconds later, the whistle blew, and it was a game.

"Oh..." Bonnie murmured, walking up to the still ink-spreading machine on the ramp. "We lost."

"Yeah, we definitely lost," Octavia agreed.

Suddenly, the purple-eyed boy had an idea. He started running down towards the enemy turf, calling Jade's name. She turned around to face him, and he trudged through the sticky green ink to reach her.

"Hey," he greeted.

"Hey," she greeted back.

"You did superfresh out there," he complimented. "I don't think I've ever encountered someone as good with an N-ZAP as you."

Jade raised an eyebrow. "What are you trying?"

"Noth...ing?" Perry shook his head. "Why would ya think that?"

"It's all the same—some boy walks up to me, gives me a compliment, and five seconds later they're trying to date me." She grumbled, digging her face into her hand. "It's annoying."

"Um..." Perry backed up a few steps. "OK... Um... Sorry."

"It's fine," she said. "I know you, Perry—you're not very subtle."

"So..."

"Thanks, by the way." She smiled. "I've practiced using the N-ZAP just about every day. I don't think I'll ever get tired of usin' it."

"And I don't think I'll get tired of my Sloshing Machine, either."

The two laughed, and just in time, Judd and Li'l Judd showed up. They did their signature dance as always, and the smaller car struck out a green flag, as expected. No cheers or cries were made as they super-jumped out of the Shifty Station, towards the Deca Tower once more so they could see their statistics.

"I wish the Shifty Stations weren't just for one Splatfest," Inigo commented. "They're so fresh."

"I know, right?" Octavia agreed, clasping her hands together.

"I love riding those ink-spreading things," Perry added.

"The spreaders?" Alexis spoke up.

"Is that what they're called?" the boy with the ponytail inquired.

"Yeah," she confirmed.

"Spreaders." Yuri chuckled. "Simple, yet fitting!"

As the statistics scrolled by, Jade asked, "You wanna play again?"

Roy looked around and nodded. "I guess." Everyone else nodded in agreement.

"Booyah!" she cheered. "Maybe we'll get another win for Team Sock!"

"Nah," disagreed Perry. "Team Sweater is clearly better."

"Oh, we'll see about that," Alexis teased.

The elevator door shut once more, and the Rainbow Squids descended through the tower again, ready for another match to start.

* * *

**A/N: Hey there, it's Branchwing! I find it hard to believe it's already February... time flies. Next thing you know, it'll be the end of the year, and we'll be at this Season 3 moment I've been highly anticipating. Planning ahead? Yes, I know. But I love my Rainbow Squids (and Octa Prisma!). They're practically my children at this point. By the way, fun fact for today: It's a palindrome day! No matter what date system you use, 02/02/2020 will always be a palindrome. Pretty, cool, right? Or should I say fresh? Hmm... Anyways, I don't think this chapter is my best, but regardless, I hope y'all like it as always. Branchwing, out!**


	37. New Semester, New Faces

_Roy's PoV_

"Hello, class," greeted Roy's math teacher. "I hope you had a wonderful winter break."

"It sucked!" yelled someone from the back of the classroom.

"Anyways, we have a new student with us today," she continued. "Please direct your attention to the door."

Sitting at the seat closest to the door was a familiar figure. Roy recognized her almost immediately—Iris. He couldn't help but feel surprised at her sudden appearance. _She's our age?_

"Please welcome Iris Thaumo." Everyone clapped, except the red-haired inkling.

"Hey," the crab next to him whispered in his ear, "didn't you lose to her in the Deca Tournament last month?"

"Yeah, I did," he whispered back. "No need to rub it in my face."

"OK, OK, calm down, Blacktip," he tried to quell his inkling friend's temper.

"I'm calm," he grumbled, remaining silent for the rest of the demonstration.

"I are happy to be over here," Iris announced.

"Thank you, Iris," the teacher stated. "Now, let's go to the lesson, shall we?"

After class, as Roy was leaving, he felt someone grab the back of his jacket and pull him back. He glanced over to the side to see the octoling, her brows furrowed.

"You should not destroy my chance," she whispered in a low voice. "Everything is perfect, but you could to ruin everything."

"Why me?" he asked.

"In Inkopolis, everything is think we are inkling," she growled. "But the Rainbow Squids know true."

"And...?"

"If Inkopolis know we are Octarians..." She frowned. "I no know what."

"Uh... OK..." In his opinion, he didn't think anyone cared that there were Octarians in Inkopolis. Life would just go on like normal, as long as they had no ill intent. Even if Giovanni had bruised his jaw at the Deca Tournament.

"Good." Iris walked past Roy, towards her next class. The red-eyed inkling looked up at the clock and figured he should be going, too. To make up for the lost time, he started walking as fast as he can, towards his gym class.

As soon as he entered the locker room, he was met face-to-face with Wyatt.

"What," Roy asked, annoyed.

"We got two new kids in our class today," he explained. "They thought I was you for a few seconds."

"How..." He peeked around the bend to see two familiar octolings put on plain white t-shirts. "Oh, come on!" he growled.

"Hmm..." Giovanni mumbled, green eyes drifting over to the newcomer. "It seems you are in the class."

"You no look the happy," Oscar mused. "Why?"

"You punched me!" Roy complained, pointing at the green-haired boy.

"No; I have the use of my hand to punch you," Gio argued.

"That... doesn't make sense."

"I was talk about the Deca Tournament."

"Oh, I get it now." The red-haired inkling touched the spot where he had bit hit. There was only a dull pain now. "Still, why wouldn't I be mad?"

"It fair we won, correct?" the boy with the afro asked.

"Ehm..." Roy sighed. "If Off the Hook thought it was fair, then..." If there anyone the citizens of Inkopolis trusted most, it was the idols. Role models, they were, for generations to come. Even if he didn't agree with the decision, he had to put faith in Pearl and Marina's judgement.

The two octolings just stared at them for a moment, and then they laughed. "To trust Off the Hook?" Oscar scoffed. "No understand."

"Can you squids just get dressed?" someone else in the locker room requested with an annoyed tone. "I'm tired of your bickering."

The tan-skinned inkling glared before heading off. "This isn't over."

After everyone changed clothes, all inklings—and octolings, counting Gio and Oscar—were directed to their own spot in the gymnasium for warm-ups. In most schools, inklings had their own separate gym class. Elementary-aged inklings did mock turf wars, usually one per week, while in high school, squids had full-blown turf wars in the courtyard almost every day.

"ATTENTION!" the gym teacher yelled. Everyone lined up in their lines, except the two new students. "We have new students with us—Giovanni Briareus and Oscar Margina."

"They look like the squids from Octa Prisma," someone commented.

"We are," the green-haired boy confirmed, the familiar smirk crossing his features once more.

"Two of the squids," Oscar elaborated. "Two is girls."

"To the back of the lines with ya!" the teacher demanded of the octolings. Roy half-expected some witty remark from Gio, but instead he nodded and went to the back of the last line with his friend. "Now, fifty jumping jacks! Now!"

Following the warm-ups, the class was directed to the room between the gym and the courtyard. "Pick up yer Splattershots!" Everyone did and walked into the courtyard. There was some sort of magical barrier that automatically sorted an inkling onto one of the four teams when they entered. Roy's ink stayed red, noted by the ink in the Splattershot he held not changing. Immediately after changing ink color, they super-jumped to their corresponding spawn point, and once everyone was sorted, the gym teacher blew a whistle, and everyone began firing.

Something Roy liked about gym class was that it was a thirty-minute-long turf war. For thirty minutes, everyone painted the courtyard, and cod, was there a lot of fun to have! Though, that being said, the attitudes of everyone varied. Some focused on inking turf, others focused on racking up splats, and still others focused on doing nothing. The boy with hair swept to the side hated it when people did nothing. Most often they messed around in their squid forms, flopping around in the corner. A few just chatted on the spawn point. Roy actually participated, trying to ink as much turf as he could. It was a turf war, after all.

Both Giovanni and Oscar were put on the green team. To his surprise, they were playing rather fairly.

"You're not gonna kick or punch anyone?" the red-eyed boy asked, curious.

"Why I?" Oscar replied.

"We talk about this, no?" Giovanni added.

"Apologize; why we?" the boy with the afro tried correcting.

"No one ask to you to apologize," the boy with the mohawk snapped.

"Uh, apologize!" He clasped his hands together. "Apologize!"

Amused, Roy snickered.

"What?" both of them growled.

"Instead of 'apologize', you should say 'sorry'," he advised. "'Apologize' and 'apology' are more formal, and, well, why'd ya wanna be formal?"

"'Sorry'..." The bronze-skinned octoling paused and looked around before returning his attention to Roy. "I like 'sorry'."

"I know the word 'sorry'," Gio grumbled. "I do not need Inkling lessons."

"Woah, Roy giving advice?!" someone exclaimed from behind the inkling. Roy turned around and saw his cousin. "Did you and Sable switch bodies or somethin'?" Wyatt jeered.

"I have this Splattershot, Requiem," the red-eyed inkling threatened, pointing his weapon at his cousin. "I can still splat you with this."

"Now _there's_ the Roy I know," he teased.

"Who is 'Sable'?" Oscar suddenly asked.

"Inigo," Roy answered. "Inigo Sable—that's his name."

"Ponytail inkling," the green-eyed octoling explained to the other octopus. "Do you know he dated..."

Gio paused and then opened his mouth to continue further, but then Wyatt interrupted, "Geneva Gonati? Yeah, we know. Don't know what he saw in farm girl, to be honest."

"Farm?" the boy with the afro inquired.

"Geneva came from the country," started Roy. "She moved here with her brother a few years ago. About three years ago, to be exact. I remember when we met her. She asked if she could sit with us, in the middle school cafeteria, and we said yes. The rest was history. She seems like a tree-hugger at first, but as you get to know her... it was like her heart always belonged to the city. Maybe that's why Geneva came to Inkopolis. Didn't feel at home in the country, ironically."

"The fresh story!" Oscar started clapping. "I give no care, but story is of the fresh!" Everyone just stared at him. "What?" He looked down at the ground. "Oh... Sorry!"

* * *

"Have you squids had any members of Octa Prisma in your classes?" was the first question Octavia asked when she arrived at the Rainbow Squids' lunch table. "Yvonne was in my physics class!" she whined. "She's the reason we have homework today!"

"Isn't that a little extreme?" Bonnie pointed out. "To say Yvonne was responsible for giving you homework?"

"I say it with good reason!" she argued. "At the end of class, she just _had_ to walk up to Ms. Gong and ask if we had homework. And guess what that freaking sea cow did? She gave us homework! Right on the dot!" She sat down and crossed her arms. "Hmph!"

"Via, calm down!" Yuri interjected. "Things will get better! Give her time!"

She relaxed. "Alright... if you say so."

"About your original question..." Perry started. "Oscar happened to be in my history class."

"I know Iris was in your math class, Roy," Bon-Bon said.

"Yeah, you texted us all about it," Inigo added.

Roy nodded. "And Gio and Oscar happen to be in my gym class as well."

"Gym class..." The blue-haired girl put a hand on her chin. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"Well, you're not blowin' up as big as a pufferfish," Yuri noted. "So, I'm guessing no."

"You're right," the red-haired inkling confirmed. "They just played like normal inklings."

"I think I see why," Inigo mused. "There's nothing at stake, unlike the tournament."

"Probably why," he admitted.

At that moment, Octa Prisma happened to stop right in front of the table, holding lunches.

"We... don't have any seats open," Bonnie told them.

"We not look to the sitting with the inklings," Iris chided.

"We stop to say 'hello'!" Yvonne chirped. Iris then scolded her in another language, causing a dismayed look to fall on the yellow-haired girl's face.

"It wouldn't hurt to be nicer, wouldn't it?" Octavia suggested.

The fair-skinned octoling grumbled, putting her hand up to her face. "Fine. Yvonne is true; we stop to say 'hello'. _However,_ we stop to say 'We better,' as well."

"Do you feel about us?" Giovanni taunted. "We find the school of you, and we go to it now."

"OK, but... why are you going to school?" Bonnie inquired.

"We can," Oscar responded.

"I'm more surprised you guys are our age," Roy admitted to them.

"It no easy to tell age?" the orange-haired octoling pondered.

"It's more like exact age," Perry noted with a shrug. "Eh... how old are ya?"

"17," Gio replied. "Your age."

"But Iris six-" Oscar started.

"Shut up!" the green-haired boy snapped. He turned back to the Rainbow Squids and cleared his throat. "Anyways..."

"The birthday of Giovanni be on the day the Deca Tournament," Iris informed.

"It a reason why we have to win," Yvonne added. "To make Giovanni is happy!"

"And we win," the indigo-haired girl finished. "To show we better than inklings."

As Octa Prisma began to walk away, the boy with the mohawk sneered, "We will beat you again."

The battle with Octa Prisma during the Sweater vs. Sock Splatfest came to mind. Whatever side Giovanni was on, the other side lost. Thankfully, his teammates kept him in check, but soon, Octa Prisma challenged the Rainbow Squids in a private battle. Octa Prisma won both times, much to the inklings' dismay.

"So, Perry," Octavia spoke up after the octolings left, "I heard you didn't buy a birthday gift for Bonnie yesterday."

"I did, I did," he defended. "It just didn't come yet."

"Do you have it now?" the blue-haired inkling asked.

"Yeah." He slipped a card out of his pocket and slid it towards her.

Bon-Bon picked it up and read, "'Free pair of glasses or contacts from Shrimp Care—Inkopolis's finest eye care.'"

"Go get yourself a fancy pair," Perry suggested. "Maybe with rhinestones or somethin'."

"But I like my retro specs."

"Read that line on the bottom of it."

"'Like your glasses? We'll replace your lens for free, too.'" She looked at the purple-haired boy and smile. "Huh. That's pretty useful."

"Say thank you."

"...Thank you."

"You're welcome." Perry simply winked, and then the Rainbow Squids continued on with their lunch.

* * *

Almost two weeks later came the Action vs. Comedy Splatfest. School had proceeded like normal. Though Roy never talked with any of the members of Octa Prisma, they were at least getting along. It was a start, at least. The red-eyed boy almost saw a kinder side to them, even. _I guess they really aren't so bad._

"You squids wanna know my favorite comedy movie?" Perry prompted, leaning back in his chair, a blue Splatfest tee on his body.

"I already know it," Yuri boasted.

"Then you don't hafta guess," the pale-skinned boy teased, winking.

"Yeah, I know," the spiky-haired inkling acknowledged.

"Can I guess first?" Bonnie asked. She wore a golden tee, marking her a member of Team Action like Roy.

"Go ahead," he permitted.

"'Squidsitting.'"

"Nah. That's a good one, though."

"Oh! What about 'The Three Shrimp'?" Alexis guessed. She picked Team Action as well for this Splatfest.

"No..."

"'Narwhal Fighting'?" guessed Inigo. As he rested his hand on the table, Roy could see the blue bracelet marking him as part of Team Comedy around his wrist.

"'Narwhal Fighting'?! Dude, that movie sucks!"

"Same," the boy with the ponytail admitted, "but my dad keeps putting it on."

"OK, I'm gonna make another guess," the short-haired girl announced again. "How about... 'Last Day of Summer'?"

"That's the one!" Perry confirmed. "Glad you squids know it."

"With the guessing games over..." Roy smiled. "How 'bout we battle?"

"That's what I was gonna say," Inigo remarked.

"Then I guess great minds think alike."

The Rainbow Squids got up from their chairs and went over to the Deca Tower. They grabbed their weapons from their storage room, and then members on opposing teams went their separate ways, towards an elevator. Roy, Octavia, Alexis, and Bonnie crowded into one of them... to find other members of Team Action standing inside. The tan-skinned inkling did not recognize any of them.

"Oh hey, it's Debbie!" Octavia exclaimed.

A girl wearing a jungle hat nodded. "Yeah, that's me." Her orange eyes glanced between the group. "Via, Bonnie. Hey." The two aforementioned girls waved.

Another girl with pigtails muttered, "Alexis?"

The short-haired girl leaned forward and said, "Maggie?"

"Huh." Via scratched her head. "No wonder she looked familiar..."

"What?" Roy asked her.

"I remember now! We did a Salmon Run together once!" she exclaimed.

"Ah..." he murmured. _Salmon Runs..._

A girl with olive skin and a Tri-Slosher chuckled, spinning the weapon around on her finger. "Even in a ditto match... We'll beat you."

"YEAH! We'll beat you!" a boy with coffee-colored skin and hair tied back in a low ponytail agreed loudly. He held a Foil Flingza Roller in his hands.

The elevator door closed behind them, and they began descending. Time passed before the floor under their feet opened up to reveal a grate. The inklings slipped through it, to their next destination. When Roy spawned in, he immediately noticed the bridge hanging overhead. Snapper Canal was their next destination.

Moments later, everyone started firing. The first thing Roy did was throw a bomb out in front of it. It landed on the drop below and exploded, covering a small amount of land with yellow ink. Then, he created a path towards the puddle with his Luna Blaster and dove into the ink left behind. A second or two later, he reemerged, spinning his weapon. Already in the middle, on top of the barricade, was Debbie. She aimed her Jet Squelcher and started shooting around her. Feeling cocky, he ran towards her and threw a bomb up at her. It bounced off the pole in the middle and fell into the water, where it dissipated. The red-eyed boy tried retreating, but then a hot pink cloud surrounded him, suffocating him. He was shot in the back and promptly splatted.

Cursing himself, he scolded silently, _I shouldn't have done that._ He looked around before heading off towards the lowest point of the map. The scent of fresh water was especially strong here. It was quite refreshing, but he had a battle to get to. That was when he saw some Tenta Missiles raining down on Octavia, in a higher point of the map. She put the bristles of the Octobrush Nouveau down to the ground and ran to the nadir. She swung around Roy and stopped next to him.

"I saw you got splatted already," she noted.

"_Don't_ talk about it," the tan-skinned inkling warned. It was a little embarrassing to have one of his friends point out his mistakes...

He ran up the steps, where the girl the Tri-Slosher popped out. She threw a bucket of ink at him, but he was easily able to splat her with one shot from his Luna Blaster. Afterwards, he continued down the stone path, inking some turf to hide in as well. Still on the barricade in the middle, Debbie remained. With newfound determination, he shot towards her. He stopped on the edge of the catwalk and inked a spot on the barricade wall to go up on. Then, turning into a squid, he leaped at the barricade and climbed up it. He reemerged behind the girl with long hair. Debbie looked behind her and was immediately alarmed to see him, panic flashing in her orange eyes. She promptly received a blast of ink to her chest, splatting her.

Roy jumped over to the other side of the map and began inking some more turf. As soon as he got enough points for his Baller, he activated it. He began strolling through the area, searching for a target. All of a sudden, a wave of ink hit the protective bubble, enough to destroy the protective wrapping around it. He gasped at this, being caught off guard. He then noticed the boy wielding the Foil Flingza Roller standing down in the lowest point of the enemy's side, preparing yet another vertical swing. He tried running over to him, but the Baller proceeded to inksplode during his travels, forcing him to stop. Some yellow ink splattered onto the other boy's shirt. He yelped, causing him to miss his shot. This allowed the red-eyed inkling to go in and splat his opponent.

Roy looked up at the wall separating the different elevations of the map, and smirked. _What a fresh comeback,_ he remarked. _Good job, Roy. Good job._ It was then Maggie dropped down to the lowest level, spinning a L-3 Nozzlenose in her hand once.

"You're on the baskfishball team, right?" the girl with pigtails asked, approaching him. "My friend Bella can't stop blabbing about this one guy named Wyatt and how hot he is. I don't see it. Do you?"

"He's... always been more popular with the ladies." He didn't feel like disclosing to her that Wyatt was his cousin. He literally just met her!

"OK..." One of her beige fingers slid down to the trigger of the Nozzlenose. "Does he have a girlfriend?"

Roy raised an eyebrow. "What are you tryin'?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing."

"Yes, you are." Immediately he took a few steps forward and fired a blast of the Luna Blaster, splatting her. _Another one down._ Seeing no other enemies, he super-jumped over to a squid beakon Via placed on the other side of the map. He emerged from behind the box and began swimming around. He reached the enemy base once again, though this time he was at the slope that led up to the spawn point. He noticed Debbie step off the spawn point, and her mouth opened slightly, as if she noticed the ripples Roy left behind while swimming. In response, the tan-skinned inkling remained as still as possible, waiting. She shrugged and started firing her Jet Squelcher again. The ink bullets got dangerously close to him, so he tried retreating. Slowly, though, as any faster would cause ripples and snap the long-haired girl's attention to him.

Retreating did not work so well. Someone had thrown a curling bomb towards him, bumping into him and forcing him to reemerge. He rubbed his head and turned around. The squid who threw the bomb, Maggie, and Debbie had both noticed him and were now shooting at him. It was too late. With both of them attacking him, he was quickly splatted. However, as he flew away to respawn, he noticed a beam point at Maggie's chest and moments later, a trail of yellow ink pierced through her and splatted her. _Nice job, Bon-Bon,_ he thought.

As Roy flew in the air, super-jumping towards another squid beakon, a yellow mist began to surround him. When he landed, a coating of ink now covered his body. He snickered and started swimming back towards the enemy base. They had managed to push further ever so slightly, now claiming the slope once more, but it was still not much. Using the Ink Armor to his advantage, he charged up as far as he could. On the platform above him, the boy with the Foil Flingza Roller threw out a suction bomb before swinging his roller up and down. One horizontal swing managed to break the armor, but Roy quickly disposed of him with a shot from his blaster. ...Then something exploded behind him, splatting him.

Once he respawned, the boy with hair swept to the side super-jumped to the same beakon as before. He tried swimming back to where he was before, but he was quickly stopped when the girl with the Tri-Slosher jumped out once again. He went back a few steps before popping out of the yellow ink. She was tossing ink everywhere, with some pink lapping at Roy's feet. He tried firing his Luna Blaster at her, but it was just a smidge short. He fired again. And again. The olive-skinned girl slewed ink out in front of her, but she, too, came a smidge short. Neither side was getting closer to the other.

Suddenly, the girl's short hair started to glow, and immediately, she activated her special. She slowed down as a mist surrounded her body, and a second or two later, she became covered in her own Ink Armor. This gave Roy an idea. He threw a splat bomb at her feet and ran away. He ran to the steps leading down to the lowest point on his team's side and watched as the pink hardened ink on the girl's body shattered. But that did not stop her. She started charging towards the red-eyed inkling again, even throwing a burst bomb at him. He jumped down to the area below, with some ink from the burst bomb brushing his back. Ignoring the stinging sensation it brought, he looked up at the wielder of the Tri-Slosher again. She dropped down to his level, swinging the slosher back and forth.

Suddenly, Alexis super-jumped to him. As soon as she landed, she dodge-rolled towards their opponent. She landed a few bullets on her, and she finished her off with a burst bomb. The olive-skinned girl exploded into a pile of yellow ink, and her gear sunk into nothingness.

"Booyah!" both of them cheered.

"Let's keep going," Alexis advised.

"Exactly what I was thinkin'," Roy agreed.

Roy started making his way over to the other lowest point of the map, located on the other team's side. When he arrived, he found it completely covered in pink ink. _They have an advantage._ He noticed Maggie coming up the steps, inking everything she saw. Her pigtails glowed with her team's color. _I have to take her out!_ At this time, Roy also had his special ready. As he ran towards her, he activated his Baller. Her violet eyes drifted over to the tan-skinned inkling, and, seeing him, she activated her own special. She, too, surrounded herself with a Baller, and the two quickly collided. When they intercepted each other's paths, they flew in opposite directions. Maggie fell into the water, and she sank like a stone. Roy was launched towards the center, coming dangerously close to falling into the pool of water there. He balanced himself before he could. Taking a deep breath, he ran towards the nadir and fell down there, where the Baller proceeded to explode. The yellow puddle left a scar on the otherwise perfectly pink clearing.

It was then Octavia arrived with her brush, swinging it back-and-forth to cover any enemy ink she saw. Together, they were able to cover up the area with yellow ink again. Even if Via did most of the work. The wavy-haired girl's hair started to glow, and she took out the Tenta Missiles launchers. Looking towards the other side of the map, she fired a plethora of missiles there. In the distance, yellow streams of ink rained down on another battlefield.

Before they could start travelling back to the other side, the boy with coffee-colored skin jumped down to face them once more. He prepared a powerful vertical swing, one in which they successfully dodged. Octavia tried running up to him, but he swung his roller once more, splatting her. He pushed it along, heading towards Roy. The other boy started running, but not to flee. Building up speed, he dashed to the wall and jumped off it, launching himself towards his opponent. He brought up his Foil Flingza Roller in surprise. Roy fired his Luna Blaster while he slammed it down, splatting both of them at the same time.

By the time Roy respawned, the whistle blew, bringing an end to the game. Putting his weapon down, he walked up to the edge of the platform and scanned the map.

"I think we won," someone mused. He looked behind his shoulder to find Bonnie, also having respawned.

He nodded. "Me too." He crossed his arms. "We won for sure."

Judd and Li'l Judd were quick to arrive. In the distance, they stood on the top of the barricade. Roy and Bonnie ran towards them for a closer look. It seemed everyone else had the same idea in mind, as everyone now crowded in the center. They did their little dance, and Judd struck out a yellow flag, marking the Rainbow Squids' victory.

"Booyah!" Alexis cheered.

"Booyah!" the other squids cheered back.

They proceeded to super-jump back to the tower to view their statistics. An overview of the map was shown first, displaying how much of a disadvantage the other team was at.

"You squids were tough to beat," Debbie admitted.

The boy that wielded the Foil Flingza Roller huffed and crossed his arms. "We were gonna win this time! I was just... lacking! That's it, lacking!"

"Just face it, we lost," the girl with the Tri-Slosher whined.

The number of splats and specials activated then popped up on the screen. As he expected, Roy was first when it came to splatting. Octavia had inked the most turf, however.

"When did you get so good?!" Maggie asked Alexis, surprised. "You were inking things like there was no tomorrow."

"Umm... practice," she replied.

"How much practice?"

"A lot." She shook her head. "Let's not get into it."

"Well, I'm leaving," the girl with the Tri-Slosher announced, heading out the door. "I want to fight some squids that are actually on Team Comedy."

"Oh, I'm coming with you!" The coffee-colored inkling followed her out the door.

"What about you?" Debbie asked. "What are you going to do?"

"I think I'm on the same boat as them," Octavia replied. "It'd be better to find someone else to play against."

"You don't want to play with us?" Maggie murmured.

"You know it's a Splatfest, right?" Bonnie pointed out.

The girl with the pigtails sighed. "Fair point..."

And so, the Rainbow Squids on Team Action exited the elevator and went on to find another match. Hopefully this time, they'll get a match against the opposing team.

* * *

**A/N: That was... a very long chapter. But now, it's done. The next two chapters are going to be the first two parts of an arc! I hope to release them both next Saturday and Sunday, but we'll see. If there's no new chapter on Saturday, then the first part of the arc will come next Sunday. See you soon, and Branchwing, out!**


	38. Break-Ups

_Octavia's PoV_

Octavia and Roy walked through the streets of Inkopolis, chatting. While on their walk, they saw a booth on the sidewalk. Curious, they went up to it. Laid out on the wooden counter were various trinkets.

"Come, one and all!" announced the man at the booth, a spider crab. "Come take Timmy's Terrific Trinkets! For a price!"

"Ooh..." Via picked up a pair of sunglasses. It had a golden frame with black zig-zag patterns running through it. The lens of the shades was brown. Rhinestones were embedded on the sides. "I like these."

Roy leaned over to examine the sunglasses. "Oh, me too." He looked at Timmy. "Can I try these on?"

"Of course! Just don't run off with them," the spider crab permitted.

He snatched the shades out of Via's hands and put them on. "You have a mirror?" Timmy pushed a small mirror towards the inkling boy. He picked it up, and his eyes widened upon seeing himself. "Mmm... looking fresh."

"What about me?" She took the sunglasses off of Roy's face and put them on herself. She took the mirror and examined herself. "I think they look better on me."

"What? No! They're better on me," the red-haired inkling protested.

"No, me!"

"Me!"

"Me!"

"Give me that!" A tan hand came to grab the sunglasses off her face. A few seconds after they left her face, Octavia grabbed it with a bronze hand.

"No!"

"You two, please stop!" Timmy begged.

"It's mine!" Roy snapped at Via.

"I saw it first!"

The two pulled on opposite ends of the pair of sunglasses, arguing over it, until finally, the arms snapped straight off. The front of the shades fell to the cement sidewalk, and the lens of it shattered on contact, sending pieces of brown glass everywhere. The remaining frame had become chipped. Both of them muttered an 'ow' as the shards nicked their legs.

"Now look at what you've done!" the spider crab cried. He gestured to the broken sunglasses, claws snapping. "Those shades went for a high price, y'know!"

"It's his/her fault!" both of the inklings accused, pointing at the other. Dumbfounded looks came across their faces upon hearing the other accuse them.

"What! No! You were hogging it!" Roy complained.

"You're the one that took it!" Via hissed.

"And it wouldn't have broken if you hadn't pulled on it."

"I wouldn't even need to if you didn't force it off my face!"

"May I remind you that you need to pay for my losses?" Timmy pointed out.

Roy growled. "I'm not paying it."

"_You're_ not paying it?" Via accused. "You should! You broke it!"

"We all know that's not true," he grumbled.

"Hey!"

"If anything, you should be the one paying it."

"I..." She stomped her foot on the ground. "I'm leaving!"

"Yeah? Well, me too."

The two inklings started walking in opposite directions, away from the booth.

"Seriously?!" the spider crab cried out. "You still have to pay for it!" Unfortunately, his plea was not answered.

* * *

At lunchtime the next day, Roy and Octavia just happened to arrive at the table they usually sat at the same time. Upon seeing each other, they immediately froze up. They glared back at each other.

"Go away!" Via demanded.

"What? No; I usually sit here!" Roy protested.

"So do I!" she fired back.

"Guys...?" Inigo spoke up, looking between the two.

"Stay out of this!" the red-haired boy roared. The boy with the ponytail recoiled back in fear.

"Well, I'm not sitting here if you're gonna sit here," the wavy-haired inkling affirmed.

"Me neither," he agreed.

Both of them simply stood there as the other Rainbow Squids arrived at the table.

"Err... What's going on?" Yuri asked, looking between them.

"Yeah, y'all don't look too happy," Perry agreed.

"A certain _someone_-" Via glared at Roy again. "-Won't leave."

"M-Me?" The boy with hair swept to the side let out an airy laugh. "No, you're the one that won't leave."

The dark-skinned inkling looked over at Inigo. "Why...?"

"I don't know, I swear," he answered quickly, throwing up his hands.

Both of the arguing squids let out a growl of annoyance and stomped away in opposite directions. _Just why won't he go away?! Stupid, good-for-nothing, annoying..._

"Via, wait up!" Bonnie called, running after her. They sat down at a table towards the entrance of the cafeteria, far from the table the Rainbow Squids normally sat at. The wavy-haired inkling took an apple out of her lunch bag and took a big bite out of it. As she chewed the chunk, the girl with the double bun put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "...What happened?" she asked.

"Roy happened, that's what," the other grumbled.

"Via..." Bon-Bon closed her eyes and tilted her head towards the floor. "Please, tell me." She then looked up at Octavia with sad blue eyes. "We're best friends, aren't we?"

She couldn't resist those eyes. "He broke some sunglasses," she finally replied.

Bonnie blinked. "That's it?" She narrowed her eyes. "That's what you're mad about?"

"Bonnie! I thought you were on my side!"

"I am! ...But..." She frowned. "This is just so... sudden. You two were always such good friends. I mean, you're the reason I even got to know Roy-"

"Don't say his name," Octavia snapped.

"Sorry, sorry... You're the reason I even got to know _him_ and everyone else. Without them, I just..." She sighed. "I would have been so lonely." She put her head on the table. "I think my parents would have been controlling as they were back then, if the Rainbow Squids hadn't come along. I can't imagine us splitting up, especially not now."

In the back of Via's mind, she had a feeling Bonnie was right. Yet, she was stubborn. Roy still denied breaking the sunglasses, it was his fault. Why should she pay for them? It wasn't her fault!

"Via?" the blue-haired girl tried reaching out again.

"We hadn't bought the sunglasses yet," the orange-haired girl started to explain. "We were trying it on, but then Roy ripped it off my face and broke it." She crossed her arms. "He should be the one paying for the damages."

"Did you ever pay them?"

"No, because Roy wouldn't pay!"

"What?!" Bon-Bon cried out. "But you have to!"

"He'll pay it another time," she argued.

"Oh..."

The two went silent, eating without any further interruption.

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys. Sorry for short chapter. There's not much to it. But, we're heard Octavia's side of the story this chapter. What's Roy's side of the story? Well, you'll find out next week ;). Branchwing, out!**


	39. On the Other Hand

_Yuri's PoV_

In the Deca Tower, the dark-skinned inkling opened up the room containing the Rainbow Squids' weapons. The floor panels slid open, and he walked down into the dark room. As he searched for his splatling, he noticed something odd about the contents in the room. Neither Roy's Luna Blaster nor Octavia's Octobrush Nouveau was inside.

_They can't both be doing turf wars_, he recalled, shaking his head. Perry took Octavia to Marie's concert tonight, making it impossible for the wavy-haired girl to be out battling right now. _Has the split really gotten that bad?_ Worry crossed his features. _That _can't_ be the case! It has to get better!_

Yuri took his Heavy Splatling Deco and started going up the stairs. As he started walking towards an elevator, he quickly spotted Roy coming out of one. Upon sight, the yellow-haired boy started calling his friend's name, and ran up to him.

"Yuri!" Roy exclaimed. He placed a hand on his chest and let out a sigh of relief. "Thank cod you're on my side."

"Since when did we start taking sides?" he perplexed. _And besides, no one wanted this to happen in the first place!_

"Look, Perry took you-know-who to the concert tonight," he pointed out. "That's one less ally for me." The grip around his blaster tightened. "And Bonnie and Alexis took her side, obviously." Frantically, the boy with hair swept to the side added, "You and Inigo are the only ones left!"

"Roy!" He frowned. "All of us still care about both of ya." He bit his lip. _What am I supposed to say?_ "No matter what, we're still the Rainbow Squids."

"I..." Roy grumbled and took a few steps past him. "This time, it's different."

Yuri put away his splatling and caught up with his friend. "What do you mean?"

"The sunglasses..." The tan-skinned inkling shifted his ink color back to red as they exited the tower. Outside, they were met with the sight of a sunset. The entire time they walked, however, Roy never bothered to look at his spiky-haired friend. "We didn't pay for them."

He lowered his studio headphones, now placing them around his neck. "Why not?"

His friend swung around, looking at Yuri with furious red eyes. "Because Octavia broke them! And she wouldn't pay for it!"

"Why does she have to pay for it?"

"Because she broke it!" He pointed a finger at his chest. "It's not _my_ responsibility to pay for it if I didn't break it!"

"OK... um... _how_ did she break it?"

"She was hogging the glasses, so I took it, yeah? But then, she tried to grab it out of _my_ hand. She pulled on it, and then BAM! It's broken!"

"I see..." The dark-skinned boy put a hand on the side of his head, thinking. Silence rested between them. Soon, he finally admitted, "I don't know how I can help you."

"You wanna know how to help?" he grumbled. "Get her to pay for the sunglasses."

"Can't I pay for it mysel-"

"_No!_ It has to be her!" Roy interrupted. "I don't want anyone helping!" Yuri simply frowned in response to his stubbornness. The red-haired inkling then let out a huff and announced, "I'm going home. See ya." He stomped away, going further and further away until he was merely a speck in the distance.

_Oh, Roy..._ Yuri got out his Heavy Splatling Deco again and walked back towards the tower for another match.

* * *

After a few matches, the yellow-haired inkling put his splatling away and started walking back home. He was just getting tired. It was night, now, and clouds covered the sky, though stars shined dimly through the fluffy canopy. As he walked, however, he heard a voice.

"Come, one and all! To Timmy's Terrific Trinkets!" someone advertised. He looked to his left and saw a booth, its counter covered with various items. Running it was a spider crab, though he seemed a little tired. "No inklings allowed!"

Taken aback, Yuri muttered under his breath, "No inklings allowed?" He walked up to the booth, and indeed, taped to the end of the sign was a paper with the spider crab's exact words written on it.

Timmy glared at him. "Are you daft? Didn't you hear me? Or read the sign? 'No inklings allowed!'"

"I did, but I just wanted to ask you somethin'," replied the spiky-haired boy.

"What?" he snapped.

"Why aren't inklings allowed?"

"Well, a few days ago, two inklings came by and wanted to buy one of my exclusive sunglasses. However, they had an argument and broke it! Do you know how much that cost me? And they didn't even pay me back!" the spider crab explained, crossing his arms.

"Oh..." _Roy and Via_, he presumed. "Do you think you'll ever reopen it to inklings?" His yellow eyes drifted down to the trinkets on the counter. "Those are really interesting."

Timmy laughed. "What kind of question is that?! No!"

"Even if one of them paid you the damages?"

This caught the crab's attention. "Hmm..." He put a claw underneath his chin, snapping it as he was thinking. "I suppose I could."

Yuri pulled out his wallet, got out a pile of coins, and slid it towards him. "Here."

Timmy counted the coins, utilizing all of his limbs to do it quickly and efficiently. "A little extra..." he then concluded, "but I'll take it!" He reached over to the front of the booth and ripped the piece of paper off the sign. "Tah-dah! Inklings are allowed again!" He then got out another piece of paper that contained poorly-drawn sketches of Roy and Octavia. "Except these two!"

"Fresh," he said, ignoring the spider crab's last statement. He started walking past the booth. "I'll see you another time."

"Come again!" Timmy shouted as a goodbye.

As he continued his trek home, his phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket. Yuri took it out and saw a notification from Squidsagram. He opened it and was met with the sight of Perry and Octavia smiling for the camera, with a stage with a lime green color scheme in the background. On the jumbotron was Marie, who had her mouth open, as if she was singing. With a smile, the spiky-haired inkling liked the selfie and put his cellphone away. He continued strolling along the streets when he bumped into something.

He looked down to see Yvonne, rubbing her head as she stumbled. "Sorry!" he apologized.

"No worry!" the octoling assured. "I am fine!" She gave a toothy smile. Then, her smile fell, and she looked at him with yellow eyes as she tilted her head a little bit. "You no look fine."

"Huh?"

"You look... worry."

"Worry?" He shook his head. "N-No, no!" he lied. "Things aren't great, that's all! Everything's gonna get better soon." Yuri finished with a fake smile. He hoped things would get better between Roy and Octavia. They have to.

Yvonne was silent for a few moments before she simply nodded. "OK," she said. "Get well soon!" She proceeded to bound away, humming the tune to Calamari Inkantation to herself.

"But I'm not s..." He trailed off. Then, he did a little chuckle to himself.

_What a strange girl..._

* * *

**A/N: Will things get better? You'll find out soon... Though, not next chapter, since next chapter's a Hero Mode chapter. There will be references to this split in that chapter, though, so keep an eye out for them. Branchwing, out!**


	40. Clarity

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**Callie's dialogue, as well as some of Sheldon's and Marie's dialogue, is taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

"_Run! Leave now and never look back!_" the mysterious voice demanded, though the phone had garbled their speech a little bit.

"Are... Uh... Are you holding the phone upside down?" Marie asked, worry edging her voice.

"Ugh... I totally was," the voice admitted, their speech clearer now.

"_CALLIE?!_" the grey-haired idol cried, panicked.

"Callie?" Alexis repeated, merely confused. Right now, she was sitting in the lair of the Octoshower, who she had just finally defeated with one of her least favorite weapon classes—the charger. The Zapfish it held squirmed in her arms as she listened to the conversation over her headset. _What does her phone being upside down have to do with anything?_

"Umm..." Now that Marie had pointed out the mysterious person was possibly Callie, the short-haired inkling could tell the voice was feminine. "Nope, this is definitely not Callie! So just...leave. It's dangerous here! And it's not safe at all!"

"Ummm... Don't those mean the same thing?" she pointed out.

"_Whatever! Just get out of here!_" 'Callie' demanded once more. "I'm not calling again!"

"W-wait! Don't go!" Marie pled. "Callie?! CALLIE!" The other line cut to silence. Alexis could hear the idol take in a heavy breath.

"Marie...?" she tried reaching out to her.

"I..." The inkling over her headset faltered momentarily. "I can't believe it. Could Callie really be working with the Octarians?"

"It seems so... strange," the bronze-skinned girl admitted. "I can't wrap my head around it."

"Look." Her voice stronger, Marie requested, "Agent 4, I need your help now more than ever."

"I'll try my best," she promised. "For the Great Zapfish... and Callie."

"Especially Callie," the idol reiterated. There was a moment silence between them before Marie said, "Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go!"

"Right, right!" Agent 4 proceeded to super-jump out of the dome, back out into the sunlight. She heard the cords connected to the boss kettle crackle, and down below her, the barrier surrounding the next launchpad shattered, granting her access to the next area. She set the zapfish down in front of her. She figured Marie wouldn't want to see her right now. "You'll be fine, right?" she asked it, in which it nodded. "Go home, now," she told it. "They're all waiting for you." With that, the electric fish jumped into the air and proceeded to fly off into the distance.

"OK, Callie and the Great Zapfish are up ahead," the grey-haired inkling instructed. "Let's do this, Agent 4!"

"Right!" Alexis proceeded to jump down to the next launchpad. She stepped onto it and turned into a squid to super-jump. She flew from the Slimeskin Garrison, into one of the tentacle-shaped formations in the canyon. Everything went dark as she flew into a small hole in the rock. She landed on a hard, metal platform, surrounded by a sea of ink. Only neon lights dotted around the floating islands helped to illuminate the cavern. "Woah..." She suppressed the fear rising up in her to move forward. She examined the platforms flying by. All of them seemed to lead somewhere else. "Where to first?"

"Hmm..." started Sheldon. "Oh!" he gasped. "It seems the next kettle... is on an invisible platform?!"

"An invisible platform?!" the short-haired inkling exclaimed in surprise.

"Don't worry, Agent 4!" he assured boldly. "I'll guide you." She nodded. "First, wait by the blue station!"

Alexis walked up to the pole with a blue neon light on it and proceeded to wait. Soon, a platform with blue lights rimming it floated by, and she hopped on it. As she rode on it, she watched everything fly by, right before her eyes. It almost made her sick, really. The sea below did not help.

"See those poles?" the horseshoe crab asked.

"Yeah," she answered.

"Fire some ink over there!"

As the platform got closer, she pulled out the Hero Shot and began firing it. At first, the bullets fell hopelessly into the abyss, but then, one bullet stuck to something. And another. And another, until a small patch of the invisible platform was covered. When the floating platform slowed, she jumped off it, onto the invisible stretch of land. She hid in the ink momentarily to refill her tank, and then she emerged, firing her weapon again. She fired around the perimeter of the platform until some ink landed another moving, invisible platform. She jumped on it again, and proceeded to jump to another invisible platform once she was close enough to it. Up ahead was a checkpoint, floating on nothing. She repeated the same procedure once more, the checkpoint activating as soon as she stepped on it.

Inking the area in front of her would soon reveal a wall. She climbed up it and proceeded forward. When she reached the end of a catwalk, she thought she had reached a dead end until magenta ink from some sprinklers landed on some more platforms that were moving in a circular motion. She dispatched of the sprinklers and covered one of the platforms in her own ink before moving on. A few meters in front of her, she spotted some more sprinklers. It was not her plan to take them down. Instead, she continued firing her weapon in the surrounding area until she noticed a platform in the very center of the ring. She jumped down to it, where she noticed something off about the platform. She pulled the trigger of her Hero Shot, firing it until a creak sounded to reveal a kettle.

"That's it!" Sheldon exclaimed.

"Nice job, Agent 4," Marie complimented.

Alexis smiled and dove into the kettle. When she spawned inside, she was amazed at the sight of artificial lights, shaped just like stars. Glowing specks floated down towards the bottom, and fireworks burst in the night sky. It was one of the prettiest domes she had ventured in, she had to admit. She shook some yellow-green ink off of her and was about to go on her way when one of Sheldon's drones buzzed by, holding a weapon case. It dropped it off in front of her, and the short-haired inkling proceeded to open it up. Inside was a brush with a theme matching all other hero weapons she has had to use so far. She picked it up and held it into the air.

"OK, take this with you," the horseshoe crab requested. "It'll help me gather some practical battle data." Alexis simply nodded in response. "If you love getting up close and personal, the Herobrush is the weapon for you," he started to explain. "You can ink the ground as you run, or you can slash repeatedly! You can close in on enemies really quickly, and then splat 'em to bits like a ninja!"

_I wouldn't call Via a ninja..._ she noted silently, memories of watching her sister practice her skills surfacing in her head.

"With the Herobrush, it's all about swinging it until your enemy explodes!" Sheldon finished.

"Mhm," she mused. "I've seen it many times before."

"Then you should know this fact—you can ink as you go!" Marie pointed out.

Agent 4 put the bristles of the Herobrush down to the ground and started running, destroying any boxes she came in contact with. By the time the crates ended, she was just out of ink. She hid in the little path of ink she created to refill her tank. She emerged, and then some Octopods noticed her and started barreling towards her, a hissing noise sounding from its back. She started swinging the brush to protect herself, and when the Octopods leapt towards her, they were destroyed on contact with the brush.

"You don't have unlimited ink, so watch the tank on your back," the idol reminded.

"I know, I know," she acknowledged, annoyed. "But when have I ever run out of ink?"

"A few times," remarked the other inkling.

She groaned. "Fair point..."

The short-haired inkling continued running along, destroying any Octopods that ran towards her. She turned the corner, where she encountered a simple Octotrooper. She immediately splatted it and continued on. She soon reached a small orange crate. She broke it to reveal some power eggs, but a path forward was nowhere to be seen.

"The path ahead is invisible," Marie noted. It was then another Octopod noticed her from on top of a crate and proceeded to run towards her, down the invisible path. "Just cover it with ink and you'll be fine." Alexis took a few steps forward and destroyed her small opponent. Yellow-green ink splattered in front of her. She walked up to the crate the Octopod was on and broke it, revealing armor. She picked it up and started searching for a path to the launchpad in the distance. Slowly, she revealed the path to it, and soon, she reached the swirling circle. Turning into a squid on it, she flew off to somewhere else in the dome.

The next area involved climbing. She painted the walls with the brush before climbing up it. She repeated it, over and over again, until she reached the top. Though on the first level were just some crates, she encountered a lone Octopod on the second. It started charging towards her, but once it again, it fell with a single swipe of the Herobrush. The third and topmost level had a shielded Octotrooper on it.

"Those guys with shields are no big deal if you can flank 'em!" the idol commented with enthusiasm. The shielded Octarian noticed Alexis as it came around the bend and proceeded to shoot blobs of ink at her. Alarmed, the short-haired inkling fell back and clung to wall, where it wouldn't see her. A few seconds later, she heard the machine Octotroopers rode whir again, so she climbed back up to the top level and was met with the uncovered back of the shielded Octotrooper. She launched herself towards it and splatted it with a few swift strokes of her brush. Agent 4 pumped a fist and continued onward.

Stepping onto the yellow grate, she looked down through it to see the contents of the area below her. Some squid rings floated below her feet, which led her to an ink-covered area another shielded Octotrooper patrolled. She waited a few seconds before dropping through the squid rings and attacking the resident Octarian. When it splatted, a can containing Splashdown appeared in its place.

"Lookin' good," Marie complimented.

"Thanks," she said back. Alexis walked up to the can and picked it up. "Now, what about this..."

"Ah, yes!" Sheldon interjected. "Splashdown!" The inkling opened her mouth to speak, but the horseshoe crab continued rambling on, more enthusiastic than usual. "Use it! _Uuuuuuuse it!_"

"Where would I...?" the agent started muttering to herself. Her question was quickly answered when she saw the next platform below—three Twintacle Octotroopers on an area covered in magenta ink, circling around an orange box. Squid rings floated above the crate. An idea popping into her head, she jumped off the grate leading down to it and broke the can as her feet left the around. Immediately, she yelled, "Hhup!" as yellow-green ink surrounded her fist. A circle marking the area of impact appeared around her, and quickly she dived through the squid rings, towards the box. A vortex of ink swirled around her on impact with the ground, and she heard the gurgled cries of the Twintacle Octotroopers soon after. When the ink cleared, Alexis found herself covered in more protective armor.

"Booyah!" she cheered.

"Way to be, Agent 4!" Marie cheered as well.

The bronze-skinned girl walked up the next grate and slipped through it, collecting the squid rings along the way. She plopped onto the checkpoint, where she reformed into a kid. She walked up to the unactivated grind rail bulb and swung her Herobrush, which proceeded to activate it and break a nearby crate. She picked up the armor that was inside and hopped onto the rail. She rode it down to the next area, another catwalk. In the corner of her orange eyes she saw... a Tentakook.

"Tentakook!" the idol alarmed.

"Marie, I see it," Alexis deadpanned, crossing her arms.

"Oh, um... carry on, then."

Agent 4 put the bristles of her brush to the ground and started running. As soon as the Tentakook noticed her, it started skating away, leaving a bomb in its wake. It splatted right in the inkling's face, breaking the first layer of armor. She quickly shrugged it off and continued running. The Octarian soon stepped onto something invisible and sped away.

"More invisible paths. Take it slow," the inkling over the headset advise.

"Woah!" Alexis gasped, stopping inches away from falling off the path, into the abyss. She jumped back into the ink trail in the form of a squid and reformed once she regained her footing. "Phew." She scanned the area once more. The Tentakook had left a trail of magenta ink behind it. She spotted it dancing on top of something. However, she also noted an orange crate. _Should I go for it...?_ It could contain more armor, after all. A few moments later, she shook her head. _I don't need it._ She put her Herobrush to the ground and followed the narrow path of ink the cowardly Octarian left behind.

It let out a cry and dropped a bomb again as it fled. This time, however, Alexis dipped into her yellow-green ink and swam a few feet back, not risking her second layer of armor being broken. After the bomb exploded, however, she continued her chase. She quickly met the Tentakook again, but however, when it dropped a grenade this time, the explosive simply fell off the edge of the platform. The Octarian jumped off the path as well, landing on another invisible walkway. The inkling followed it, determined to splat it.

As the chase continued, Alexis heard Marie groan, "I don't think I'll ever get used to this..."

Finally, she managed to corner the Tentakook. With a few strikes from her weapon, it exploded into yellow-green ink and promptly dropped a key, which the idol made note of. Agent 4 unlocked the vault up ahead, revealing the all-too-familiar swirling circle. She stepped onto the launchpad and flew off to her next destination. The next area, from what she could see, was divided into two sections. Dash tracks allowed anyone to travel from one area to the next. That's exactly what the Twintacle Octotroopers on the other side did—they jumped over to where Alexis stood and started attacking her. Their combined power broke her second layer of armor, leaving her with only the Hero Suit now. She started swinging her brush rapidly, hoping to splat them as quickly as possible. She splatted one of them, but the remaining one, which had some yellow-green ink spotting its feature, managed to break her Hero Suit. She didn't even notice it at first, though, as a few more swipes splatted the second one before it could splat her itself.

The agent rested a bronze hand on the railing to catch her breath after the close fight. Looking down at her hands is what finally made her notice her suit had broken. She tried to muffle her surprise over it, but a yelp still escaped her mouth. Moments later, however, the yellow sleeves of her hoodie appeared again, signifying the Hero Suit's repair. With that, she stepped onto the dash track, which flung her over to the other side. She walked up the edge of the platform again to see a mass of Octotroopers down below.

"What in the world are they up to?" Marie wondered out loud.

"I don't know, but..." Alexis started.

"I feel a big fight coming on..." the idol finished.

"Exactly!" the short-haired inkling agreed.

The inkling over the headset chuckled. "News flash—I'm a mind reader. I know _exactly_ what you're thinking," she teased. "But seriously. Be prepared."

Alexis nodded and walked up to the only orange crate in the line of boxes. Breaking it revealed yet another can with a special weapon on it, so she picked it up.

"Oh! That's a Curling Bomb Launcher!" Sheldon explained. Past the boxes, one of the Octotroopers noticed her and started shooting at the inkling on the battlefield. "Let 'em have it!" She broke the can open, and immediately she was equipped with the aforementioned launcher. She started throwing out a bunch of curling bombs, and the explosives started bumping off the walls and flying off of the dash tracks. Though many of them hit at least one Octotrooper, none of them splatted. However, a few of them were injured to the point where she could just run them over with her Herobrush. After she disposed of the last Octotrooper, only one Octarian remained—a Twintacle Octotrooper with a shield, but this one had darker tentacles than normal, and two thrusters were on each side of the machine it piloted. It was easily able to dodge most of her shots. As the agent ran around the battlefield, she picked up some armor, but it was immediately broken by this Twintacle Octotrooper. Finally, after throwing a bomb over its head to distract it, she managed to splat it.

Alexis wiped some magenta ink off her cheek and perplexed, "Why was that one so strong?"

"I think that was a Deluxe Twintacle Octotrooper you just faced there," Marie explained. "I've only ever seen a few in my entire life, but for eel, they. Are. Tough."

"Yeah," she agreed. "They are."

"Anyways, nice fight," the idol continued. "Get to that launchpad." Agent 4 looked to the side to see that a launchpad, like Marie had said, had appeared. She ran over to it and turned into a squid on it, bringing her to the next area almost immediately. There, a line of magenta ink sprawled out in front of her, and an Octocommander stood in the distance. She put the bristles of the brush down and ran straight through the line. The Octocommander started charging up its weapon, and some hissing sounded from on top of the crates that were in the way. Some Octopods were now charging towards the inkling. She swung behind a wall as the Octopods crashed into the ground. She hid behind her cover, listening as the Octocommander began its rapid fire.

"When brute force won't work, try using a little finesse," she suggested. Once the Octocommander had ceased fire, Alexis stepped back out into the open and continued forward, when suddenly a Twintacle Octotrooper popped out of the ink. She let out a surprised cry and started striking it, causing it to fall and explode into yellow-green ink. The other, bigger Octarian, had begun to charge up its weapon again. The short-haired girl smashed the boxes and jumped up to the Octocommander. As it was firing, she swung the Herobrush once more, splatting it.

"Yes," Marie exulted. Alexis progressed to the next checkpoint, to the next area. There, more Twintacle Octotroopers circled around a tall, wooden building. The inkling's orange eyes drifted up it until she reached the top, where a lockbox stood. She splatted the Octotroopers and climbed up the the building to be met with the sight of a shielded Octotrooper. It spewed a giant glob of ink right at her face, causing her to fall to the moat below. When she landed, she felt something pointed dig into her back, and then she heard an explosion. Her Hero Suit shattered once more, and she sat up with a groan. She climbed out of the moat and sat down in front of it, waiting for it to repair. As she sat, another Tentakook ran by, its path confined to the narrow moat, but when it saw her, it dropped a bomb and ran away again.

_Hmm..._ She inked her feet and hid in the puddle left behind, waiting for the Tentakook to return. A little later, it sped by again, pausing right in front of her to do a little dance. This was her chance to strike. She emerged from the puddle and swung her brush, splatting it immediately. Left in its place was a key. Remembering the lockbox, she climbed back to the top of the wooden building and hid in another puddle of ink, waiting for the shielded Octotrooper to expose its back. It had actually shot out some magenta globs when she arrived, but soon it looked around, confused, and returned to its normal duties. At the perfect moment, Alexis popped out of her hiding spot and struck the Octarian in the back. It dropped a can containing yet another Splashdown in it, and when she picked it up, Sheldon proceeded to ramble about it again. She tuned him out and proceeded to unlock the lockbox. Inside was a silver thing with likeness to a fish—a Sardinium. She tucked it away in her pocket and continued on.

At last, Alexis could see the glow of the zapfish, far off in the distance. For a second, she wondered why the industrial Squee-Gs were not immediately heading towards her, but then she noticed some floating crates... or rather, crates on invisible platforms. She inked the invisible wall and broke the crates once she got on top of it. The first crate she broke contained armor, while the other contained a can containing Ink Storm. She glanced between the two cans—the one in front of her, and the one she held. _Do I really need Splashdown?_ A few seconds later, she shook her head and picked up the Ink Storm can, tossing the Splashdown can aside. Over her headset she heard Sheldon try to stifle a scream.

"Ready to get up close and personal with a couple of Octocommanders?" Marie asked, trying to sound encouraging.

"No..." Agent 4 whined.

"Now, lead those industrial Squee-Gs with ink and bombs!" she directed.

Alexis climbed to the top of the invisible platform, where the two Octocommanders present proceeded to start charging up their weapons. She threw a splat bomb at the ground in hopes of attracting one of the industrial Squee-Gs. Seconds later, both Squee-Gs running around started beeping and heading towards the puddle of yellow-green ink the bomb left behind. It was then the Octocommander on one of them began to fire. That Squee-G was the first to arrive, so that was the one the short-haired inkling hopped on. The Octarian looked down at her, anger steaming through its sunglasses. She swung her Herobrush back and forth, quickly splatting it. However, one Octocommander still remained, one she could not reach at the moment. It was then she remembered her special weapon. She broke the can, and out came Ink Storm. Holding the container in the air, she waited until she could get a straight shot and threw it.

A yellow-green cloud started travelling across the invisible plane, spreading droplets of ink wherever it went. The fire of the remaining Octocommander covered the battlefield, including the industrial Squee-Gs. Alexis now found herself standing in the sticky magenta ink. Following the assault, she inked her feet and directed the industrial Squee-G to the vantage point in the middle of the clearing. She climbed up it and used her bombs to direct the other machine to her, the one that would bring her to the zapfish.

Somewhere, she heard a gurgle. "You did it!" Marie then exclaimed.

"Did what?" She looked over to where the second Octocommander would be, only to see a puddle of her ink in its place. "Oh."

"Now, grab that zapfish!"

A few more bombs later, the bronze-skinned girl could finally leap over to the other side. She busted the barrier surrounding the electric fish open, and she promptly pulled the freed zapfish into a hug. She smiled and super-jumped out of the underground dome. She emerged from the kettle, and immediately Sheldon began speaking.

"Let me check your weapon log..." the horseshoe crab informed. "Yup! Data's coming through!" He paused, and then he commented, "Oh, man. This is really good stuff."

"You say that every time, Sheldon," Alexis pointed out.

"But really! You bring great data every time you test out one of those lovely new weapons, Agent 4," Sheldon noted. "So remember—the more data you get me, the quicker I can finalize my retail version, so keep it up!"

The agent simply nodded and proceeded to super-jump back to where she entered, where Marie was waiting. Her face was partially shadowed by her umbrella, but from what she could see, she wore a worried expression. When she saw Alexis, her lips drew up in a half-hearted smile.

"Hey," she greeted.

"Hey." She gave the zapfish to the idol. "You OK."

The grey-haired inkling frowned. "It's just... Callie." She sighed. "I really hope we can save her soon."

Orange eyes drifted around the cavern, thinking. "Where could she be?" Agent 4 wondered out loud.

Marie muttered something under her breath, and the other inkling asked for her to repeat it. "I think she's with DJ Octavio," she guessed.

"DJ Octavio? He's the leader of the Octarians, right?"

She nodded. "If..." Her voice faltered again. "If... If Callie really is helping the Octarians, then that slimy disc jockey wouldn't risk leaving her out in the open."

"I see..."

A silence now weighed between the two inklings. Instead of saving more zapfish, however, Alexis's mind drifted towards another topic—the split between Roy and Octavia. The whole situation had been going on for over a week now, and frankly, Alexis was getting tired of it. Like the others, she just wanted the Rainbow Squids to be whole again! Thankfully, Inigo had devised a plan to fix their relationship. However, they still needed an extra person to help them out. Suddenly, the short-haired inkling remembered the idea she had thought of before coming to Octo Canyon. Now was her chance to propose it.

"Hey, Marie..." she started. "Do you like Salmon Runs?"

"I..." The idol focused her starry eyes on the girl, rubbing her eyes. "Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Just let me explain!" Alexis proceeded to detail the situation between Roy and her sister, then going deeper into the plan. Finally, she proposed her idea.

After she finished, Marie raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about this?"

"Please, Marie?" she begged. "I'm already helping you save the Great Zapfish and Callie, so can't you help me on this one small thing?"

After a few moments, the idol finally nodded. "Alright," she said. "I'll do it."


	41. Fishy Friends

**Mr. Grizz's dialogue is taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Bonnie's PoV_

"Inigo..." muttered the blue-haired inkling. She looked up at her friend. "Are you sure about this?"

"Bonnie, I trust you," he assured, moving Roy's tan hand to Bonnie's beige-skinned one. Now, both of her hands were occupied—Via's bronze hand was in the other. "You can do this."

"Inigo, what are you doing?" asked the red-haired boy. Both Roy and Octavia had been brought outside of Grizzco's. With blindfolds covering their eyes and ear muffs covering their ears, it was assured that neither of them would catch wind of the others' plan.

"You'll find out soon," the boy with the ponytail shouted loud enough for his friend to hear. Quieter, he put his hands on Bonnie's shoulders and told her, "Good luck." He lifted them off of them and started walking away. "I'll be back."

"Mm." The girl with the double bun nodded solemnly, turned around, and looked up at the logo of the shady business. She sighed and walked inside, leading Roy and Via along.

"Right on time, kid," Mr. Grizz greeted, ignoring Roy's presence. "I've got work for ya."

"Can I take this blindfold off, now?" Octavia asked. No one answered her. Bonnie feared that if she raised her voice, Roy would hear her and leave. "Hello?"

"Uh..." She glanced down at the bear statue, which only emitted a hum. "Bring us to the boat!"

An elevator opened up, and the three immediately crammed inside it.

"Bonnie!" the wavy-haired inkling whined. "What are you doing?"

"Who was that?" the inkling with hair swept to the side demanded.

"Umm, umm..." _Carp, carp, caaarp!_ Bonnie pressed a button to force the elevator door shut, and then it began to descend. In the darkness, they stood, the beige-skinned inkling gripping her friends' hands tightly. After it stopped, a hiss sounded, and the floor opened up beneath their feet to reveal a grate. She turned into a squid, tentacles slipping out of the other hands, and went through the grate, hoping the others would catch on and follow. She popped out of the pipe and flew towards the boat, landing on the deck. Roy and Octavia landed on it shortly thereafter, still with their ear muffs and blindfolds on. Bonnie took them off of them.

The red-haired inkling gasped upon meeting her blue eyes. "Bonnie?!"

The bronze-skinned girl looked around, and when she saw Roy, she growled. "You!"

"I-" He looked around frantically, and after a few moments, his brow furrowed, and he looked not at Via, but Bonnie. His red eyes seemed to give off a furious glow. She gasped and stepped back. "You brought me on a _Salmon Run_?!" he roared.

"Roy, please-" the blue-haired inkling started.

"He tricked me!" he interrupted. "You tricked me!"

"Roy!"

"Oh, you definitely deserve a butt-kicking now." He started advancing towards her, pounding a fist into a hand.

"Roy, don't you dare hurt her," Via commanded, jumping in front of her friend.

"Why should I listen to you?!" he challenged.

"Because _no one_ hurts my friends," she snarled.

"Guys?!" Bonnie cried out in fear. She backed up against the wall, her heart pounding in her chest.

It was then a lime-green squid landed behind them, who muttered, "Umm..."

Roy turned around. He gasped and stepped out the way for the others to see. The girls gasped as well. Standing in front of them was none other than Marie of the Squid Sisters.

"...Is this a bad time?" she asked.

"No, no!" Roy spluttered. "N-Nothing's wrong here!"

"But-"

"Absolutely _nothing_ at all!"

"O...K..." The idol sighed. "I'll get ready." She started walking to the door that would lead below deck.

"Wait!" Roy caught up with her. She looked over at him, confused. "Can you show me where I change?"

"You haven't been here before?" The red-haired inkling shook his head. "Alright."

After the two inklings disappeared below deck, Octavia immediately ran over to Bonnie and looked down at her. "Are you OK?!" she asked.

"I'm fine, Via," she assured her. "Roy just scared me, that's all..."

"Why'd you even bring him out here?" she scolded. "And why did you blindfold me in the first place? I'm fine with Salmon Runs!"

"I didn't want you to know he was coming," Bonnie murmured.

"Huh?" the wavy-haired inkling muttered. Bon-Bon repeated what she said, which prompted Octavia to groan, "_Nothing_ good will come out of this." She crossed her arms. "We're all gonna get splatted, and we'll lose our ranking, _and_ Marie's gonna think we suck."

"Maybe, but we're here now," she admitted. The blue-haired inkling started walking below deck. "I'm going to get changed. You better change, too."

"Ugh..."

Bonnie continued onwards to the changing room. She grabbed a spare Grizzco uniform and put it on. Thankfully, she was wearing contacts today, so there was no need to put her glasses away and spend the shift with bad eyesight. Once she was in uniform, she started trekking through the halls, looking for the exit to the deck.

As she was walking, she heard a grumble. Bonnie paused and looked around. Stomping out of the hallway in front of her was Roy, dressed in the Grizzco uniform, too. His red eyes drifted over to her blue ones, and he stopped, turning to look at Bon-Bon.

"What?" she asked.

"Though you still need a butt-kicking, I..." He faltered, and then started rubbing the back of his head. "I need you to show me how to get out of here."

She recalled the earlier events, of which it seemed he genuinely wanted to hurt her. "Wasn't Marie showing you the way?"

"She showed me to the changing room," he pointed out, "but she wasn't done changing by the time I finished."

"You didn't wait for her?"

"I can find my own way out!" he protested.

"But you're asking me for help."

"I-" He shook his head. "Never mind! Just... lead the way."

"Alright..."

Like she had said, Bonnie led Roy to the deck. Immediately, the scent of salt hit her nose, and, if anything else, it seemed like the sky had gotten only a little bit darker. The red-haired boy proceeded to lean back on the wall, crossing his arms. The blue-haired girl simply stared at him.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she lied. "Nothing."

The inkling with beige skin walked up to the railing of the boat and leaned against it, her arms hanging over it. While she waited to arrive at the next Salmon Run destination, she could think. The first thing she fought of, however, was her doubts over Inigo's plan. Despite the boy with the ponytail's reassurance, she worried she would fail to bring Roy and Octavia back together again. And if it failed... who knows what would happen to the Rainbow Squids then? Losing her friends was one of her biggest fears, no matter what happened.

_We'll just have to wait and see, then_, she finished silently. She wished she had some of Yuri's optimism in this trying time.

She heard more footsteps walk onto the deck, but not a single word was uttered. She looked over her shoulder to see what was happening. Roy and Via stood several feet away from each other, glaring at each other. Marie seemed to be the newest arrival, as she looked between the two inklings before stepping away.

"You squids aren't much for words, are you?" she commented, keeping a straight face. Bonnie was about to go approach her and apologize for the others' behavior, but anxiety got the best of her, and her feet stayed glued right where they were. Nonetheless, the idol ended up striding next to the girl with the double bun, occupying the space next to her. She simply let out a sigh.

"Umm..." _So many things could go wrong,_ she worried. "Hi."

Marie looked over at her with starry eyes and smiled. "Hey."

"I... Um... How are you?"

"Pretty fresh. Are you?"

"Yeah, I'm fresh," she replied. "The shopkeepers at the Galleria never had a problem with me."

"And your friends?"

Bonnie looked back over at Roy and Octavia. "They're... I don't know."

"What do you mean?"

"They've been acting this way since last week," she started to explain. "All because they broke some sunglasses." She frowned. "I just want things to go back to the way things were before."

"Is that why the red-head looked super mad before?" Bonnie nodded. "Huh. ...What's his name again? It's like Rick or something, right?"

"Roy. His name's Roy."

"Roy! That's his name." Marie gave a toothy smile. "Thanks for reminding me."

"You're welcome." Once again, silence settled on the ship. The day turned into sunset, and there was a group of structures in the distance. The time to begin the shift was nearing. "So..." Bonnie broke the silence again. "Have an update on Callie?"

Immediately, Marie frowned. "Callie..."

The blue-haired inkling realized her mistake. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for bringing it up! Please forgive me!" she pled.

"Don't worry, it's fine," she assured. "It's just..." She let out a heavy sigh. "We think we know where Callie is."

"You do?" She smiled. "Does that mean she'll come back soon?"

"I hope," said the idol. "We have the best looking for her, don't worry." Despite her words, her gaze seemed distant. Bonnie didn't want to press any further, though.

She didn't have time to, anyways—Lost Outpost became a more discernible figure now, meaning they had to change their ink colors any time, now. Bonnie's hair changed color to a hot pink, and she noticed Marie do the same to the tips of her grey hair. She looked over at Roy and Via again. The bronze-skinned girl noticed the new hair color her friend donned and changed her ink color to pink as well. Roy's red eyes darted around the area, and with a sigh, his hair turned pink, too.

"I think pink suits you, Ryan," the idol joked.

"I-" The tan-skinned boy began stammering until he could form the sentence, "My name's not Ryan!"

"Whatever, let's go," commanded Bonnie.

Turning into squids, the group super-jumped over to the outpost, landing inside the central building. They resided in the ink for a little bit, until they all popped out with a weapon. When the blue-eyed girl saw what was in her hands, she squealed in excitement. _A Classic Squiffer!_

Via, who had a Dynamo Roller, looked over at her. "Well, aren't you lucky," she deadpanned.

Bonnie expected an egg basket to pop up in the building, but one did not. "A school of salmonids is gathering down at the shoreline," Mr. Grizz informed over a radio. "Group up and bring 'em down."

"What's the deal with guy?" Roy scoffed, gripping a Splattershot Jr. "How is he so sure there's no salmonids up here?"

Marie peered out the window, down at the shore. "Hey, Ralph, you might want to take a look down here."

The boy with hair swept to the side seemed to ignore being called by the wrong name and ran up to the idol. "Where?"

While Marie pointed out the salmonids to Roy, Octavia tugged on Bon-Bon's hand. "C'mon," she whispered. "Let's go."

"But R-" the other girl started.

"Roy can deal with his own problems; we gotta stop the salmonids before they get up here," she interjected before Bonnie could finish.

"Alright..."

The two girls jumped down the opening that led to the shore and ran to the egg basket. Past the basket, however, salmonids were already infesting the place. A Steelhead lumbered ashore, and once its bulging eyes spotted the girls, it started preparing a bomb. Bonnie charged up her Classic Squiffer while running towards it and fired just before it could launch one of its ginormous bombs. From its remains floated down three golden eggs. The wavy-haired inkling ran past her and snagged one of them before running back to the baskets. More lesser salmonids trailed behind her, but Bon-Bon simply took them down by charging up and firing her Squiffer.

"Wave! Double-Bun!" called Marie. The beige-skinned girl ran off the grating and looked towards the source of the voice. The grey-haired inkling was running down the hill, Roy closely behind her. A Scrapper drove up to them. Marie rammed the canopy of the Undercover Brella into its shield, causing it to stop. The tan-skinned inkling stared at her, dumbstruck. Before he could react to the idol's instructions, a wave of pink ink crashed down on the Scrapper's backside, causing it to explode and leave behind some golden eggs.

Near the egg basket was Via, smirking at her little achievement. "You don't know anything, Blacktip," she jeered. "I can out-perform you in more ways than one."

"You-" Roy ran down the hill and shoved the wavy-haired girl aside as he started firing the Splattershot Jr. All he did was target some lesser salmonids. He stood in the same place, until suddenly, glowing green rings surrounded his feet.

"Look out!" Bonnie tackled her friend, pushing him out of the way of the Maws's lunge. They skid across the pink ink, stopping inches away from the water.

Roy got to his feet, ink sliding off the rubber overalls he wore. "Whatcha do that for?" he snapped.

"You were gonna get splatted by the Maws," Bonnie replied, "so I saved you."

"The _what_?" he demanded, perplexed.

"Maws... It jumps up out of the ground and tries to eat you," she explained.

"And how did you know one was gonna eat me?" Another set of green rings appeared around his feet.

"That!" The beige-skinned inkling grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the circle. He whipped around and watched as the boss salmonid leaped out of the green puddle of ink it left behind, snapping its jaws before heading back under.

"Oh." Unfortunately, they were getting cornered. More salmonids ran towards them, threatening to push them into the water. "I can handle this." He started firing his shooter again.

"Umm... Roy." The next time the Maws tried to strike, Bon-Bon pulled Roy out of the circle again and threw a bomb in its place. When it ate the bomb, the Maws exploded, leaving golden eggs behind.

He picked one up, making a disgusted face at it as he stored it on the life preserver. "What," he answered.

"What special do you have?" she asked.

"Ink Jet, why?"

"Use it!"

"Can't you use yours?"

"Mine's Bomb Launcher! It barely does anything to a school as big as this one!"

"Ugh, fine." He took a silver package from his hat and tore it upon, and immediately he was equipped with a jet pack and a large gun. Pink ink propelled him upward, and he began firing shots down at the salmonids. With each shot, at least one lesser salmonid splatted, typically a Chum or a Smallfry. By the time his Ink Jet began to beep, a path was cleared for Bonnie to slip through. She swam past the remaining enemies, popped a golden egg into the basket, and came back to Roy, emerging from the ink with a charge she had stored. Her shot pierced through the Cohock that was about to slam its frying pan into the tan-skinned inkling.

"Booyah!" she cheered.

Before Roy could make his way back to the egg basket, another Scrapper popped out of the ocean and ran him over, splatting him. The boss salmonid drove towards the egg basket, where Bonnie stopped it. She rapidly fired weak shots at its shield until it broke down, stopping the Scrapper in its tracks. She swept around it and fired a few charged shots at its back, splatting it. She deposited those eggs into the basket and turned her attention to Roy.

A little squid ghost bobbed around in an empty life preserver, crawling its way towards the inkling with the double bun. "Ouch..." moaned Roy. The girl tapped the trigger of the Classic Squiffer, giving the life preserver a shot of ink and reviving Roy. Once he reformed, he threw the golden egg he held into the egg basket, as if he were shooting hoops.

The round was over yet, though. A Stinger had emerged from the water, and now it was firing a pressurized beam of green ink towards the other side of the shoreline.

The boy with hair swept to the side shuddered. "Why do they gotta use cooking utensils?" he whined.

"Is that a problem?" she questioned.

"It makes me hungry."

Bonnie couldn't help but snicker. "Oh, Roy..."

They took down the Stinger, and when they returned to the egg basket next, they encountered Octavia and Marie.

"We've been responsible for most of the eggs," Via bragged.

"You don't have proof," the red-eyed inkling hissed.

"I mean, Ray's not wrong," Marie noted.

"My name is Roy," he corrected, scowling.

"_Roy's_ not wrong," the idol repeated.

"I'm quite confident I'm right," the bronze-skinned girl argued.

It was then green markers appeared around Octavia's feet, and she gasped.

"There's a Flyfish somewhere," Bonnie informed.

"That's... kind of obvious," said Marie. "But yeah, we gotta find it."

"Why're you askin' me?" Roy shrugged. "You squids forced me to go to a place I know nothin' about."

Octavia's orange eyes narrowed into a glare. "We weren't." She started swimming away from them, towards the side Roy and Bonnie were just on. The latter followed her, not wishing to leave her alone. When she caught up with the wavy-haired inkling, she saw a smile form on her face. "I knew you'd come back." She patted the beige-skinned inkling on the top of her head. "You see that?"

In the distance was a Flyfish, its launchers open. "Yeah," replied Bonnie.

"We gotta take it down!" She started running across the grates again. "Let's go!"

Both of the girls pulled out bombs. However, when they arrived, so did Marie and Roy.

"Take out a bomb, Rex!" instructed the idol.

"For the last time, my name. Is. Roy." He complied anyways, pulling out a splat bomb.

"Now, wait for it, wait for it...!" The Flyfish's launchers opened and proceeded to fire some missiles. "Now!"

The four of them chucked their bombs at the launchers. All of them landed, and the Flyfish went down with a particularly explosive splat. Three golden eggs appeared, and the girls went and grabbed them, leaving Roy without an egg. He pouted, but followed them back to the egg basket. They continued defeating salmonids and grabbing golden eggs, stuffing the basket with them. Surprisingly, there were little-to-no casualties from the inklings' side.

Finally, the salmonids started to retreat, with Mr. Grizz saying, "Come to papa, little eggs... Now bring me more!"

Immediately, they all super-jumped back into the building, hiding in the pink ink. When they next reemerged, Bonnie held a Splattershot Jr. By Mr. Grizz's words, they were once again down at the shoreline. The second wave went by similarly to the first wave, though there were a few more splats. Roy struggled using the Classic Squiffer, and despite Bonnie's advice, he did poorly. They managed to meet the quota in the nick of time, and when the wave ended, everyone let out a booyah.

"Hey, you're enjoying this," Marie noted, throwing the Dynamo Roller over her shoulders.

"I-" Roy rubbed his mouth and then stated, "I'm not!" He started running back to the building. "You never heard me say 'Booyah'!"

They super-jumped back inside, and when Bonnie emerged, holding an Undercover Brella, the sky started to get darker than ever before, turning day into night. This time, the egg basket popped up inside the building instead of outside like the last two waves.

"Oh..." Octavia groaned, putting the Classic Squiffer she now held to the ground. "With deadweight like Roy, we're gonna be splatted."

"Deadweight?!" the red-eyed inkling cried out.

"Deadweight or not, we need to focus," Bon-Bon reminded them.

It was then Mr. Grizz informed them, "Here comes a Griller..."

"Wh-"

"Shh!" Bonnie shushed Roy, allowing the bear statue to speak further.

"Aim for its exposed tail," continued the voice. "That'll let your coworkers know where to shoot, too."

"Exposed...?" Roy trailed off when a big boss salmonid appeared, accompanied by rattling and some smallfries. A red beam was pointed at his chest. "HOLY CARP!" he exclaimed. He backed up against the wall and swung a powerful swing of the Dynamo Roller, but the pink ink simply bounced off of the Griller's armor.

"Aim for the smallfries!" Marie advised. "We'll take care of the Griller!"

The salmon pink tail of the Griller hung out of its back, vulnerable to enemy ink. Bonnie and Marie began charging towards it, shooting their weapons at the tail. Past the boss salmonid, Roy had the Dynamo Roller on the ground, splatting any smallfry that came in contact with it. With the combined power of the Undercover Brella and the Splattershot Jr., the Griller was able to bust open, and multiple tails began spinning around the pan.

"Help us!" the beige-skinned girl requested. "Hit the tails!"

The tan-skinned inkling raised the roller and slammed it down, sending another wave of pink ink at the Griller. On contact, it exploded, leaving five golden eggs for the picking. In the aftermath of the explosion, Via swooped in and took the golden eggs for herself.

"Hey, Via?" Bonnie asked. "Why didn't you help?"

"Look, he's so confident that he can do it by himself," she explained. "I mean, look at him!"

Roy had approached the next Griller, even though it was not targeting him, but rather, Octavia. He was waving his arms around, trying to get its attention.

"Hey, Griller!" he called. "Your mother was a blobfish!" The boss salmonid simply ran him over, flooding him with green ink and splatting him, but it was hard to tell if it was in response to the insult or not.

"See," the wavy-haired girl concluded.

"Now might not be the time for arguing," Marie interjected. "Look!"

Octavia looked down at her chest, then back up at the Griller. She let out a cry and ran up to the back exit, where Roy once was. She then proceeded to jump back down and swim towards the other side of the outpost. The Griller had to stop in order to turn around, which allowed Bonnie and Marie to get behind it. The grey-haired inkling tossed a bomb towards Roy, reviving him. She gestured for him to come over, so he did. He leaped up into the air, preparing a powerful vertical swing. After a couple seconds, pink ink slammed down on the Griller's tail, busting it open again. The group finished it off, allowing more golden eggs to float down to the floor.

The wavy-haired girl emerged from the ink and looked over at Roy. "Why did you help me...?"

"Marie told me to," he replied. "But that doesn't mean I'll help you every time."

"Looks like you got two Grillers out there," Mr. Grizz suddenly said. "Take them out before they barbecue your entire work crew."

Bonnie looked down to see a red laser pointing at her chest. So did Marie.

"Rob, Wave," the idol started, "looks like you two have to work together, or else we're all gonna be fried calamari."

"Oh, no..." Via groaned.

"We trust you!" the beige-skinned inkling assured as she and the pale-skinned inkling climbed up to the same spot Roy and Octavia had occupied before to avoid the Griller. Except this time, the threat of being splatted was doubled.

"I'm splatting them!" the wavy-haired girl declared.

"No, I am!" the boy with hair swept to the side argued. He shoved Via out of the way and started preparing a vertical swing to hit one of the Grillers' tails with.

"Stop!" She knocked Roy down, causing the swing to be not as powerful as intended. Both Grillers still stood.

Bonnie opened up the canopy of the Undercover Brella and began shooting at the smallfries targeting them. Marie helped in her own way by throwing a bomb at the ground, splatting a large number of smallfries. Yet, they kept coming as long as the Grillers stood.

Octavia fired a fully-charged shot from her Classic Squiffer, busting one Griller open. Bonnie and Marie took it down while the other two inklings focused on the second Griller.

"Stop it," the bronze-skinned girl snapped. She elbowed Roy's stomach causing him to fall over thanks to the weight of the Dynamo Roller. He turned into a squid and swam away to avoid getting crushed by the roller, leaving him empty-handed. Without an inkling wielding it, the wheel of the Dynamo Roller began to run dry. Instead, Roy began depositing golden eggs.

"Uh, guys?" Bonnie tried to get their attention. "Please, get rid of that Griller!"

"I'm trying, but Roy keeps distracting me!" Via argued.

"_Distracting_ you?" The red-eyed boy picked up the Dynamo Roller again. "You're the one who pushed me!"

"Quit it!" the blue-eyed girl pled. "Work together so we won't get splatted!"

It was then a group of smallfries started pushing Marie, causing her to trip and fall into the water behind them. Bon-Bon looked behind her and watched with an upset look on her face. This distraction allowed the remaining Griller to run her over and splat her. She let out a groan as she bobbed back up in a life preserver.

While Bonnie and Marie began calling for help, more Grillers began closing in on the remaining inklings. Roy and Octavia looked at each other, before looking back at the boss salmonids.

"T-They..." Via started. "They were right!" she confessed, falling onto her knees.

"Huh?" Roy looked over at the other girl.

"We should have taken that Griller down, together!" A tear fell from one of her orange eyes. "And now, we're paying the price!"

"Octavia, I..." The tan-skinned inkling kneeled down and pulled the bronze-skinned one into a hug. "I'm sorry!" he sobbed.

"I know, I'm sorry too!" she croaked.

"I'm sorry for breaking the sunglasses; I'm sorry for ignoring you-"

"No, I'm the one responsible! I broke the sunglasses; I ignored you!" Octavia interrupted.

"No, Via! I tried to hurt you," he protested. "I tried to hurt you _and_ Bon-Bon, and I almost went through with it!" He sniffed and released himself from the hug. "I'm a bad friend!"

"Roy, Roy! I forgive you!" she tried to assure him, putting her hands on his shoulders.

"No... Who would forgive that?"

"You didn't mean it!"

"But I _did_ mean it at one point."

"Roy, let's focus on now."

"We're gonna get splatted..." He smiled and wiped a tear from his eye. "And I don't care! I just want to leave!"

"Yeah, we can't do anything."

"So, let's get splatted..."

"...Together."

Roy and Octavia stood up with their backs against each other, facing the Grillers. Immediately, they ran them over, splatting them and ending the shift. When the two inklings reemerged as life preservers, all of them super-jumped back to the boat, where they were revived. Mr. Grizz began talking about the results of the Salmon Run shift, but no one listened to him. Instead, they all immediately went under the deck and to the changing rooms, where they put their normal attire back on. Then, they emerged back out on deck to find the boat heading back to Inkopolis.

"Hey, Marie," Bonnie asked once they had all regrouped.

"Yeah?" she answered.

"Can I take a selfie with you?"

"Sure."

The girl with the double bun pulled out a blue cellphone and posed with Marie. After she took the picture, she immediately sent it to all of the Rainbow Squids. On a separate group chat that excluded Roy and Octavia, she began detailing the events of the Salmon Run. Once the boat arrived, they all super-jumped back into Grizzco's, and Roy proceeded to bolt out of the building, into the square. Realizing why, Bonnie began texting a final message to the other Rainbow Squids.

'We still have a problem,' she concluded the text with.

* * *

**A/N: Ha! Did you think this arc was going to end this chapter? Well, that's not the case. I decided to throw a little more drama into there... Anyways, it's March now! And you know what that means... The Rainbow Squids's first anniversary! Thank you all for reading this over the past year; I really appreciate it. On March 30th, you guys get another chapter, a day after the usual Sunday upload. I promise. Stay tuned, and Branchwing, out!**


	42. Light Show

_Inigo's PoV_

_December 13th, 2016_

_"Ya think Geneva will like this?" In Inkopolis Plaza, Roy held up a dark green sweater with white squid patterns on it and showed it off to his friends._

_"Yeah," Octavia replied. Her long hair was tied back in a similar manner to Callie's, though she lacked the bow the idol sported. She had thrown one of her tentacles over her shoulder and was now petting it. "She loves sweaters."_

_"What do you think, Inigo?" the red-haired inkling asked the indigo-haired one, loose tentacles hanging over his shoulders._

_"Yeah, you're dating her," Perry agreed. His hair was tied back into a ponytail like most inkling boys, though he sported bangs as well._

_"I say..." Inigo paused. _It's green, and it looks nice. She'll like it, right?_ "Yes."_

_"Fresh." He stuffed the sweater back into the gift back and promptly sat down on the fence. "Now we wait."_

_"What did you all get for her?" Bonnie suddenly spoke up. On the other hand, while she had long hair like most inkling girls, she lacked the bangs most of them had. Though she was quiet, she always seemed to be listening and always had something to say at the right time._

_"I got her this shirt." Via threw her tentacle back and pulled a lime striped shirt out of the gift bag she had in her lap. "It's the latest from Splash Mob. Cost me a fortune!"_

_"Ooh..." they all marveled._

_"I got her a hat." Yuri, who had six small tentacles on the back of his head, pulled out a white cap out of his gift bag. "It's not much, but I hope she likes it!"_

_"I don't see her takin' off that beanie of hers any time soon," the orange-haired inkling joked._

_"Not with that attitude!" the yellow-haired boy exclaimed. He patted her on the head, causing her to cross her arms and make a small sound._

_"I got Geneva..." Perry pulled some tickets out of his pocket. "...Two tickets to the next football game! She and her brother can go."_

_"I..." Inigo was going to say that she might not like it, but he didn't want to be rude. Perry shelled out a lot of money for two tickets, after all._

_"I... what?" Roy asked._

_"Nothing," he replied._

_"You're getting her nothing?" Bonnie asked._

_"Wha- NO!" The fair-skinned boy shook his head and waved his arms around. "That's not what I meant!"_

_"Then what are you getting her?" Yuri asked._

_"Yeah, I don't see anything on you," Octavia commented, her orange eyes scanning him for a few brief moments._

_"It's a surprise..." Inigo looked over his shoulder to see if his girlfriend was coming. She was not... yet. "But I'll tell you."_

_"Spill it, Inigo!" the dark-skinned inkling egged._

_"Yeah, don't keep us hanging!" the bronze-skinned girl agreed._

_"It's..." The indigo-haired boy put a hand on his chest and looked to the side. "It's a light show." His gaze returned to the other Rainbow Squids. "I bought a few fireworks, and I'm gonna launch them on the rooftops when she gets there. Then, I'm gonna take her inside and turn on these disco lights I bought." He grinned. "It's gonna be great!"_

_"That sounds so fresh!" Yuri complimented. "I kinda want to be there myself."_

_"It's just for the two of us," he pointed out. "I don't want anyone ruining the moment."_

_"I know, I know..." he said. "But it just seems so fun!"_

_"Yuri..." Roy warned._

_"Can't you lighten up, Roy?" the yellow-haired boy requested. "I wasn't going to bother them anyways."_

_"She's coming!" Perry announced._

_On the other end of the stretch of land, Geneva emerged from the Inkopolis Tower, brushing some ink off of her. Her long green hair and her Splattershot, filled with the same green ink, glistened in the sunlight. Her green eyes searched the area before laying them on the Rainbow Squids. She put her weapon away and ran towards them._

_"Inigo!" she exclaimed, grabbing the fair-skinned boy's hand. She looked over at the other inklings. "Squids!"_

_"So, Geneva..." Via started. Everyone held out their gifts._

_"Happy birthday!" all of them announced._

_"Aw, thanks." She took Bonnie's gift first, a thin box wrapped neatly in turquoise paper. She tore it open to reveal a box containing a Fresh Squiffer inside. "A new weapon?"_

_"You said you wanted a charger, so..." She met her blue eyes with Geneva's green. "I got you my favorite type."_

_"And it's the new one, too," the green-haired girl commented, holding the box up in the light. "Fresh."_

_"It's in the name," Perry teased, throwing some finger guns. Everyone chuckled at his remark._

_"Here's mine." Roy handed his gift bag to Geneva, and she proceeded to open it as well._

_She examined the sweater and smiled. "I like it."_

_"And here's mine!" Octavia handed her gift bag to the green-haired girl._

_She pulled out the lime shirt and gasped. "Oh!" She hugged it. "The latest from Splash Mob." Her eyes met with Via's. "Thank you."_

_"You better wear it tomorrow," she teased._

_"Don't worry, I will."_

_"My turn!" Yuri plopped his gift bag in Geneva's hands. "I really hope you like it!"_

_She pulled the hat out of the bag and proceeded to take her beanie off to replace it with the white cap. She tipped it downwards and gave a smirk. She gave a thumbs-up to show her approval._

_"Simple, but fresh," she noted. "I like it."_

_"And here's my gift." Perry handed her the football tickets. "Have some fun with them."_

_"Football tickets..." Geneva glanced between the tickets and the purple-haired inkling before saying, "Thanks."_

_"No problem." He snapped his fingers. "Anything for your birthday."_

_"So, Inigo." The green-haired girl turned to the aforementioned inkling, smiling. "What's your gift?"_

_"It's a special one," he replied. He walked up to her and whispered in her ear, "Meet me in Flounder Heights tonight."_

_"We're going rooftop running?" she perplexed._

_"It's more than that." Inigo smirked. "You'll see."_

* * *

_In a hero costume, the boy with a ponytail paced around the rooftops of Flounder Heights, waiting for his girlfriend to show up._

Where is she?_ he wondered. _She's not usually late.

_It was not long before the green-haired girl arrived in her own hero costume. She walked up to Inigo and smiled._

_"Hey," she greeted. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and asked, "So, why'd ya bring me out here?"_

_"Your birthday present, obviously." The boy with the ponytail winked._

_"...I don't see it," she stated looking past him._

_"Well, we gotta run to find out." With that, Inigo started racing towards their next destination. "Follow me!"_

_"Hey, wait up!" Geneva yelled after him._

_Jumping from rooftop to rooftop, the two inklings ran through the night. The lights below illuminated the streets, while only the moonlight illuminated Geneva and Inigo. Every now and then, the latter would look over his shoulder to make sure the former still followed him. Her presence was marked by the lights the hero headset replica gave off—a convenient feature of the hero costumes they wore. They ran past Flounder Heights, getting closer and closer._

_Eventually, they arrived on top of an office building near the two towers of Inkopolis, Inkopolis Tower being closer. There, some fireworks laid on the ground. Nearby was an entrance to inside, where Inigo had stored the rest of his lights._

_"We're here!" he announced._

_"...To what?" the green-haired girl asked after an awkward silence._

_"Stay right there." The indigo-haired boy walked over to a torch lying next to the fireworks. He separated the explosives, picked up the torch, and began lighting them one at a time. After the last firework was lit, he ran back to Geneva and wrapped his hands around her arm. The fireworks shot up into the air, exploding into various colors. Green, indigo, and he even put a rainbow one in there. A big smile started to spread across the long-haired girl's face, the lights reflecting in her eyes._

_"Woah..." she breathed._

_"'Woah' indeed," Inigo agreed, a smile spreading across his face as well._

_"Inigo... You didn't have to do this," she remarked, looking at him._

_"But it's your birthday," he pointed out. "How couldn't I?"_

_She chuckled. "Ha ha, true. I guess you wouldn't be Inigo without going all out in the name of love."_

_"Oh, shut up." Despite his words, the boy with the ponytail couldn't contain his laughter. Soon, the two were on the floor, laughing until it hurt._

_Soon, they faced each other, tears of joy in their eyes. "Will a kiss make you shut up?" Geneva asked, inching closer to him._

_"Y-Yeah." The two met lips, and as quickly as it started, it ended. Afterwards, Inigo stood up and told the other inkling, "There's more."_

_"More?" She stood up as well, tentacles dragging along the cement as she rose. "Where?"_

_"Not fireworks, but I think you'll like this even better." The fair-skinned boy walked over to the door leading downstairs and picked the lock open with a paperclip he had in his pocket. "After you." He bowed and watched as his girlfriend walked inside. After she entered, he walked in and closed the door behind him. They went down a flight of stairs, towards a storage room. They stepped into the dark room. Inigo tapped a button with his foot and in an instant, the room burst into color. The disco lights spun around, spotting the room in different colors. Squidmas lights shifted between green and indigo, which were arranged to read, 'Happy Birthday Geneva!'. A projector in front of them flickered to life, displaying an ocean pattern on the ceiling._

_"Wow... That was nothing to compared to this," Geneva commented with awe._

_They sat down again. "Happy birthday, Geneva," Inigo said. "Happy birthday."_

_The green-haired inkling threw one of her tentacles around the indigo-haired one and leaned against his shoulder. Feeling her suction cup on his chest, he proceeded to undo his ponytail and let one of his own tentacles fall on her head. He wrapped an arm around Geneva and pulled her closer to him. Comforted by the warmth of her body, Inigo watched the lights, together with his girlfriend._

* * *

_Present Day_

As per his mom's orders, Inigo dug through his closet, looking for stuff to throw away. All while he chatted with Roy over the phone, being put on speaker so he didn't have to carry the electronic the entire time.

"I can't even look at Bonnie," the red-haired inkling whined. "Not without thinking what happened before the Salmon Run."

"You could try thinking of something else," he suggested. "That's what helped me not tear up every time I talked to Geneva after we broke up." The very statement brought memories of their break-up back to his mind, forcing him to bite his tongue to distract himself from the thoughts.

"Would that even change anything, though?" Roy muttered. "I still tried to hurt her."

"Roy, this is probably the fifth time I've said it—no one hates you, and we forgive you."

"How do you know? You're just one squid."

"The Rainbow Squids and I have talked about it. Multiple times."

"Who's to say they're not lying?"

"You really think we're lying?"

"I-I... No...! I just..." Roy let out a groan. "I can't talk to you right now!"

"Roy, wait-" And just like that, his friend hung up. Inigo sighed and picked up his phone. _Why is he being so difficult?_ He frowned. _I just want him back... I want Geneva back..._ Once again, he found himself with tears rolling down his cheeks. "Dang it, Roy!" He punched the wall, causing a box in his closet to fall to the ground. "Why'd ya gotta make things difficult!"

After the box fell, however, he noticed something fall out of it. Rubbing his eyes free of tears, Inigo picked it up and examined it. A disco light. Memories of its last use—Geneva's 16th birthday—came rushing into his head. Much simpler times, they were, where Inigo wasn't sitting here, loathing the break-up.

It was then something Fable had once said to him came into his head. _Just think of the good times you had with her!_ she had once said regarding how to move on from Geneva. And to him, the light show was one of the highlights of his relationship with the green-haired inkling. He doubted it would be something he would forget soon.

But so many things were reminders of Geneva... Perhaps he could rid of it? Once he was sure he would not burst out into tears again, Inigo made the decision to take it somewhere else. To someone who deserved it more than him.

Cupping the disco light in his palms, the indigo-haired inkling started walking down the street, towards Geneva's apartment. He arrived at the apartment complex, entered it, and took the elevator up to the floor the Gonati residence was located. Soon, he was standing outside of the front door. Gripping the base of the light with one hand, he took a free hand and knocked on the door. No one answered.

"Asher?" Inigo called. "Are you there?" From within, he heard footsteps scurry around. "It's me, Inigo."

The door pushed open to reveal a disheveled Asher. His hair had been taken out of its ponytail, leaving two tentacles to just barely drape over his shoulders. He wore nothing but shorts and a t-shirt, and he slouched, making him seem only just barely taller than Inigo. What was most striking, however, was the fresh bandages wrapped around his forearms. He had seen them only once before, and even then, Asher didn't want to talk about why he had them. He doubted he would talk about them now.

"Inigo!" the green-haired inkling gasped. "I-I didn't expect you." He tugged on the end of the bandage closest to his hand.

"I know," he acknowledged. "I just wanted to bring you this." He held out the disco light.

"What...?" The young man looked down at the object.

"You remember Geneva's 16th birthday, right?"

"When you bought a bunch of lights for her?" With a frown, he nodded. "I remember her telling me about that."

"Well, this was one of the lights I used." The boy with the ponytail glanced between the light and the older inkling. "I wanted you to have it."

"But... why?" Asher leaned against the doorframe and rubbed his eyes, shaking his head. "Geneva should have it."

"She should..." Before he could stop his tongue, he found himself saying, "But she isn't here." Sadly, he added silently.

He looked away from Inigo. "I don't deserve it," he muttered.

"What?!" the indigo-haired inkling cried. "Why not?"

"I..." Asher took a few steps deeper into his apartment, into the darkness.

"Asher?" he called. The green-haired inkling started receding further into the apartment, until he tripped on a slipper and fell onto the firm cushions of the couch. "Asher!" The younger boy ran over to him. "Are you OK?!"

The young man groaned and sat up. "My back isn't," he said, rubbing it.

"I know there's more to it than that," Inigo insisted.

"There isn't!" he snapped.

The fair-skinned boy was taken aback by his harshness. "But-"

"Leave!" he demanded.

Slowly, Inigo started backing away, towards the exit. Just as he was about to bolt out of the apartment and back home, he noticed something peculiar. Suddenly, it dawned on him just what Asher had been doing before he got here. With horror, his indigo eyes drifted back towards the other inkling's watery green ones.

"Asher..." he whispered.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, a tear rolling down his cheek. "I've been failing her." He shook his head. "I've been failing everyone."

"Where did you get that idea?" Inigo pondered. He walked back up to the couch where the other resided. "You aren't failing anyone!"

"You don't get it," he croaked, more tears flowing from his eyes. "You don't."

"Please, Asher!" Inigo demanded, kneeling down. He raised a hand, his fingers brushing Asher's bandages. "How long have you been doing this for?"

"Years," he replied. "Before I even came to Inkopolis." He gulped. "Geneva... I promised her I would see the day she returned. But now..." He flexed his fingers, balling his hand into a fist and then releasing it. "I-I don't know how much longer I can keep that promise."

"Asher..."

"I failed her at the Deca Tournament," he croaked. "You would have won if it wasn't for me." Once again, his green eyes met the boy's indigo ones. "You know how good Geneva is." His eyes dropped again. "I should have never accepted your offer."

"Look, Asher, look." The boy with the ponytail put his hands on Asher's shoulders. "I miss her too, but..." He paused, searching for the right words. "You did great at the Deca Tournament." He smiled. "Geneva would be proud of you."

"Would she? Would she really?"

"Yes. She would."

The green-haired inkling let out a laugh and hugged Inigo. "Thank you."

"Any time." Inigo patted his back. "We care 'bout you, too."

Asher let go and sniffed. "Y'know... I'm glad you were her first love, Inigo." His smile fell, and he looked down at the ground. "I'm glad it wasn't another her..." he muttered so quietly that Inigo could barely hear him. He decided not to press on the identity of 'her'. His green eyes met Inigo's again, and he finished, "I'm glad she has such an awesome group of friends."

"Well, you know the Rainbow Squids—we stick together no matter what."

"And I'm glad for that."

"Me too, me too." The indigo-haired boy started walking towards the exit of the apartment. "Stay safe, Asher. Call me if you need me."

Asher simply nodded, and the other inkling left, leaving the disco light in the young adult's hands.

* * *

**A/N: A solemn note to end this chapter with. How in detail I can go with the ending is quite limited by the rating, but I tried my best, even if I feel like I am pushing it quite a bit. I really hope you guys get what I was trying to imply here. Anyways, I really wanted a flashback chapter at some point in The Rainbow Squids, and now seemed like a fitting time. The main idea I wanted to introduce is that Inigo and Geneva used to do rooftop runs, but I also wanted to show some of Geneva's dorky side, as well as go into how her disappearance affected Asher more. The next chapter is much more positive, I promise you. Until next time, Branchwing, out!**


	43. Perry's Day Off

_Perry's PoV_

"C'mon, Roy," grumbled Perry. "Ya can't just shoot hoops all day."

The red-haired inkling continued throwing rubber balls into a basking shark dummy. "Yeah, I can, actually."

"But there's other things you can be doin'," he noted.

"Like what?"

"We can do a turf war together! Or listen to me make my next song!"

Roy threw a ball behind his back, causing it to bounce across the basketball court's floor, and then he looked at the purple-haired inkling. "Perry, name one person who likes your music."

"Jeleff likes it."

"He's a _jellyfish_, they like just about everything."

"Well, Yuri likes it, too!"

"Ehh... anyone else?"

"Norman."

"Who?"

"Nautilus, about your height."

"Alright, so more than one person likes your music."

"And your point is...?"

"I don't have one."

"Well, turf war is still an option!" Perry pulled his phone out and walked up to Roy, pulling up Squidsagram. He began scrolling through his feed and stopped at a picture of the other Rainbow Squids following a turf war. "Look how much fun everyone's having!"

The boy with hair swept to the side huffed. "Why aren't you with them?"

"That's the same thing I could be asking you!"

"But that's different." He crossed his arms and turned away from the other boy. "You know what happened by now."

"I dunno why you're making such a big deal out of this," Perry remarked. "But-" He heard the sound of doors opening somewhere, so the two boys turned towards the sound. Standing in the doorway was Giovanni, alongside another inkling taller than Roy, with light brown skin and sky blue hair tied up into a ponytail. Interestingly, he was also rather muscular.

"Move out of way, squids," the green-haired octoling announced, holding an orange ball under his arm. "Me and Griffin are going to play basketball."

"Yeah!" Griffin agreed, pounding his basketball into his giant hand.

"What do you mean?!" someone else yelled. At another door stood Lori and another inkling girl with pink, wavy hair and an eyepatch. "We were gonna play basketball now, too," complained the wavy-haired girl.

"Deadeye, calm down," Lori soothed, squeezing her hand. She cleared her throat and asked Gio and Griffin, "Can we play with you?"

"I hoped to only pl-" the octoling started.

"Yeah," the tall inkling answered her question.

The girl Lori was with, who appeared to be named Deadeye, relaxed and nodded. "Alright, but to let you know beforehand..." She smirked, letting go of the teal-haired inkling's hand and dribbling a basketball. "I'm really good."

"You are?" Giovanni raised an eyebrow. "We will see."

Roy growled and started heading out of the gym. "Wait, Roy!" Perry yelled, reaching his hand out for him. The red-haired inkling still left, and a frown fell upon the purple-haired boy's face. He made a sound of dissatisfaction and turned to the other people in the room.

"Leave," the green-haired boy demanded of Perry, crossing his arms.

"He can stay," Lori argued.

"No, Gio's right," the pale-skinned inkling told the girl. "If I played, the teams would be uneven, y'know?"

"You can watch...?" she puzzled.

"Nah," he declined. "I was gonna leave, anyways."

"Alright," she concluded.

"Now, time for some music!" exclaimed Griffin. He pulled a boombox out of nowhere and pressed the play button, beginning the song Muck Warfare by Off the Hook. He set it on the ground and began shooting hoops. Perry simply sighed and exited the court.

The gym he and Roy were at, Mother of Health, was the main rival of Musselforge Fitness. Though the latter's main appeal was its many rock-climbing walls, the main of appeal Mother of Health was its variety of facilities available. Outside of the exercise bike room stood Bonnie, who was tugging at Oscar's indented ear. A book rested in the inkling's arm.

"Ow, ow, stop," the octoling with the afro complained.

"Are you sure this isn't a siphon?" Bon-Bon asked.

"Yes! You are the read the book of ancient octopus!" he replied. "Not octolings!"

"So..." Perry approached the two. "What's going on?"

"Hey, Perry," the blue-haired girl greeted. "I'm trying to figure out how octolings are different from inklings."

The purple-haired boy scratched his head. "...Why?" he puzzled.

She shrugged. "I'm just curious." She showed him the book she was reading, titled, 'The Ancient Octopus'. "I was reading this book. It has a lot of fresh stuff in it!"

"Like what?"

"Well, apparently, they're super smart, despite only having eight arms, and they're also venomous!"

"OK..."

"She to start pull my ear with no warning," Oscar pointed out. "Though, only after I telled her I no venomous."

"Hey, at least I didn't tell you to take off your clothes," Bonnie remarked.

"I can," he said, a smile dancing across his face.

"Please don't," she begged. "You'd be arrested if you did."

"Yeah, no one wants to see that in public," Perry added, trying to hold back laughter.

"The house of your?" the octoling offered.

"No!" The inkling with the double bun groaned and started heading towards the exit of the building.

After she left, Oscar mumbled, "Too bad..."

Perry crossed his arms, chuckling. "Please tell me you were jokin', Oscar," he hoped, turning to look at the bronze-skinned boy.

"I was," he confirmed with a frown. "To hope she get it."

"Don't worry." He patted the octoling on the back. "I got it." He walked backwards into the exercise bike room, throwing finger guns towards him. Oscar simply watched in confusion. Regardless, he decided to get some exercise while he was here at the gym. He took off his pearlescent hoodie, revealing a white tee underneath, put it in one of the shelves, and hopped on one of the bikes. He plugged in his earbuds into his phone and listened to an Off the Hook playlist while he cycled.

About ten minutes later, he noticed someone get on the bike next to him. When Perry looked over, he found Iris, fair hands on the handles, her indigo eyes focused on the panel.

"Hey, Iris," he greeted, taking one earbud out of his ear.

She glared over at him. "What."

"Woah, I just wanted to say hi," marveled the inkling. "No need to be harsh."

"I _should_ be the nice," she argued, "no _be_ the nice."

"Can't ya at least try?"

"Hmph." The octoling with poufy hair returned her attention to the panel and snorted. "Giovanni only want to fight inklings, to show he better. Simple arrogance."

"You're kinda the same." _And I don't get why that's relevant,_ he wanted to add.

"No. I have the reason to being mad."

"Well, don't leave me hangin'! Spit it out!"

She sighed. "I think no one listens now." She turned to look at Perry. "Lean." He did as she asked. Iris leaned towards him and started whispering. "Two years ago, before the Calamari Inkantation, I serve the Octarian army."

"I know Gio said Calamari Inkantation 'set you free' or whatever, but I still don't get why it's important."

"It to free the souls of octolings from the oppression," she explained. Though he still didn't get what Iris meant, Perry asked for her to continue with her story. "I station at one base. It design to look like an old mine."

"Oh! Like Bluefin Depot!" The popular ink battling spot was flooded by the same tsunami that ruined many other popular stages. After the water had receded, it had been destroyed beyond the point of repair, and thus, it was demolished. No one knew what was going to happen to the land Bluefin Depot once stood on. Multiple theories on the matter flew around, like a mall being built on the land, yet nothing remained confirmed.

"Exactly," she noted. "After I free, I live near it until it destroy."

"You didn't take part in any ink battles back then?"

She shook her head. "I stilled mad."

"So, what happened next?"

"One day, an inkling appear. We hear she had destroy many Octarian troops. We know her by one name: The Dreaded."

"The Dreaded..."

"I hear from one friend of mine—one spy—that the successor of the Dreaded destroys now. Call her: The Dauntless."

"Aight, aight, back to the story."

"To continue. The Dreaded tear through comrades—friends—like they are nothing. I watch each one splat. Forever." She stopped pedaling and slumped onto the panel. "I make a error. I hide. I fear. I think I no can defeat her."

"Ouch..."

She muttered something in Octarian, presumably a curse. "Only elite survive. They yell to me after. They send me to DJ Octavio. There, the Dreaded appear again to fight him. I learn her real name—Agent 3."

"Hold up, Iris. You're saying the squid Gio blabbed about when Alexis and I fought him isn't someone he made up?"

She nodded. "He appears to obsess on Agent 3. I no do get why." She sighed. "Anyways, soon, the Calamari Inkantation play, and then I escape. But, I still being mad at the dreaded Agent 3 because she splat my friends... and that I do nothing to stop her." She growled. "I _will_ get my revenge. I swear on the dead, so everything is finally perfect again."

"Man..." Perry frowned. "This Agent 3 gal sounds terrible."

"She is."

"Well..." The purple-haired inkling began slowing down, eventually coming to a stop. "I think that's enough for today." He hopped off the exercise bike. "See ya, Iris." The octoling simply nodded her head in acknowledgement as he departed. Perry grabbed his pearlescent hoodie off the shelves. He threw the necklace it came with around his neck, while he tied the actual cloth around his waist. He exited Mother of Health, and as he headed to his car, he spotted a group of people tending to some flowers outside the facility. There, he spotted none other than Yvonne.

"Hey, Yvonne!" he called, running up to her.

The dark-skinned octoling looked up and turned around to face him. "Hi!" she cheerfully greeted him. "I am planting the flowers!"

"Please, leave," someone else requested him. He turned over to find the source of the voice, who turned out to be a grumpy-looking grouper wearing a lot of jewelry. "You're disrupting the harmony."

"No can talk to my friend, Mrs. Liath?" Yvonne challenged.

"And I wasn't 'disrupting the harmony,'" Perry argued. "I just wanted to stop for a quick chat."

"Well, you're certainly not harmonious," she remarked, eyeing the pale-skinned inkling. "Two earrings on one side, but only one on the other? Several rings? That hat? You look like you're part of a gang!"

"I wish," he teased. Mrs. Liath made a sound of disgust at it. "So, anyways." He turned back to Yvonne. "Why did ya join this flower-planting club?"

"I used to be growing wasabi," she explained, "so I think I should to be growing something else instead." The dark-skinned girl looked over at him and gave a toothy grin.

"Interesting..." He smiled. "I'd best be goin'." His purple eyes drifted over to the grouper. "I don't wanna 'disrupt the harmony' again."

"Good," Mrs. Liath said. "Now go."

"Goodbye, Perry!" Yvonne called. "To see tomorrow!"

"Bye." With that, he ran to his car and started driving back home, bringing an end to his long visit at Mother of Health.

* * *

**A/N: Alright, so this chapter... has a lot of talking in it. But hey, we got some valuable information off of it. See you next week, and Branchwing, out!**


	44. Trouble is Brewing

_Roy's PoV_

One day, Mr. Carp summoned Roy to his office.

"Roy Blacktip," he started, one white-tipped tentacle hanging in front of his face, "by your next shift, there will be a new member joining you."

"Why are you telling me this?" the younger inkling asked. "Newcomers have joined my shift before."

"It's more than that." He cleared his throat and continued, "The new employee told me he knows you personally."

"Personally?" He gulped. "Is he on the baskfishball team with me?"

Mr. Carp shook his head and focused his orange eyes on his employee. "His name is Oscar Margina. Do you know him?"

_Oscar._ "I do," the red-haired boy replied, trying to say calm. Though his dislike of him was not along the lines of Giovanni and Iris, he still was not particularly fond of the octoling. _Why couldn't it have been someone else?_

"Well, don't get into any fights with Mr. Margina, alright?" he instructed. "I do _not_ want this business to have a bad image."

"Alright," Roy agreed.

"Good," the older inkling finished. "You are dismissed."

"Thank you." He rose to his feet and walked back behind the counter of Starfish Drinks to continue his shift.

* * *

A few days later, Oscar appeared to have beat him to the coffee shop. By the time he walked in, the octoling already stood behind the counter, brewing something. The red-haired boy took a deep breath and walked towards him.

"Hello," he greeted, crossing his arms.

Oscar looked over at him and smiled. "Hello."

"...You work here now."

"I do." He took the cup he was brewing a drink in and wrote a name on it. "Deliver this latte."

"OK." He took the latte and walked over to the pick-up counter, setting it there. "Latte for Beatrice!" A familiar, middle-aged inkling with long red hair came over to grab it. "M-Mom?!" he gasped, bewildered at her appearance.

His mother simply sighed. "Roy, you realize I have a life outside of the office, right?"

"Yeah, but..." He shook his head. "Mom, please, just sit down. You'll hold up the line if we just stand here and chat."

She took her latte and frowned. "Alright..." Roy watched as she walked out of the building, and suddenly he felt a little guilty for dismissing her.

"You are lucky to have the mom," Oscar commented from behind him. At his voice, the tan-skinned inkling turned around to face him. "I no meet my parents..." he murmured with a heavy expression.

"How...?" Before he could finish his question, the boy with hair swept to the side shook his head. "Parents or not, we need to work."

The bronze-skinned octoling sighed. "Of course you say that..."

Red eyes drifted towards the cash register. "You wanna take orders, or...?"

"I like the making of drinks," he replied. "I can no speak Inkling well; you know this."

"I know, I know..." Now, it was Roy's turn to sigh. "Fine, I'll take orders."

"OK. Be having the fun."

* * *

For the next few hours, Roy worked the register, taking orders whenever a customer came up to him. Near the end of his shift came one particular customer. A funny-looking inkling boy walked up the counter. He appeared to be around his age, with tan skin much like himself and blue eyes the same shade as Bonnie's. His head was shaved on one side, but on the other side laid four blue tentacles that reached his chin. Covering his mouth was a King facemask, and he was wearing a prune parashooter. Roy couldn't tell what kind of shoes he was wearing.

"Pardon," he greeted, "I would like some standard coffee. Decaf."

"Standard... decaf." The red-haired inkling wrote the order down on a slip of paper. He then entered the information into the cash register, and once the total popped up, he told the customer. "That will be 1,100G."

The blue-haired boy slid a pile of coins towards him. "Great."

"What is your name?" he then asked.

"Brayden," he replied. "B-R-A-Y-D-E-N."

Roy wrote it down and nodded. "Alright, we will call you over when your drink's ready."

"Thank you." Brayden walked over to the waiting area, while the other boy walked over to Oscar and gave him the order slip.

The octoling read over it, and a worried look proceeded to form across his face. "The name 'Brayden' is the familiar," he mused.

"With that spelling and everythin'?" Roy questioned.

He nodded. "The friend of Iris is named Brayden." He leaned closer to the red-haired inkling and whispered, "An octoling, like me."

"Is it this Brayden an octoling?" Roy asked.

"I can tell, but where is he?" He turned Oscar around and pointed to the blue-haired boy. The bronze-skinned looked up at Roy and nodded.

"Really?" he gasped.

"I do not lie, do I?"

"Stop chatting and make the order!" one of their coworkers complained.

"Sorry, sorry!" Oscar apologized, snapping right back to the machine to continue brewing the coffee. After he made Brayden's order, he handed the cup to Roy, who proceeded to call for him. The blue-haired boy approached the counter and swiped the coffee out of the red-haired inkling's hands before going to a table and sitting back down.

He returned to the cash register and took the next customer's orders. As he took orders, however, his red eyes were focused on Brayden. The supposed octoling sipped his coffee every-now-and-then while scrolling through the contents on his phone. Just at it seemed like Brayden was finished drinking, Oscar retired from the coffee-brewing machines and started to head towards the exit of Starfish Drinks.

"Oscar!" the tan-skinned inkling called. "Where are you going?"

"My shift is done," he replied. The bronze-skinned octoling had stopped in the doorway, turning his head to look towards his coworker.

"Already?" Red eyes glanced up at the clock, then back into orange eyes. "Then my shift's done, too." He walked towards Oscar, hoping to follow him out of the coffee shop. Unfortunately, he crossed paths with Brayden, who was trying to leave the building, too. "Umm..." Roy started, annoyed. "Can I leave?"

"I was trying to leave, too," the boy with a sidecut argued. "You might work here, but I have better things to do."

"Like what?" he challenged, crossing his arms.

"Roy...!" the octoling with the afro whined. "No fight!"

"Oscar, leave," the red-haired inkling demanded. "This isn't your problem." Oscar's eyes widened, but he simply gave a nod and darted away into the streets. There goes my chance to talk to him, Roy grumbled to himself. He focused on Brayden again, narrowing his eyes.

"Is he your friend?" the blue-haired octoling questioned.

"I-" Becoming flustered, he shook his head. "N-No!"

"It seems like he is."

"We just work together, nothing more than that!" Roy straightened and started to march out of Starfish Drinks. "Good day!" he concluded.

Still in his uniform, the tan-skinned inkling traversed the streets of Inkopolis, towards the square, where he could potentially play some turf wars. Yet, he was not in the mood for turf wars, or any ink battles, right now. _I need to talk to someone..._ He could talk to Oscar, but he had seemingly disappeared after leaving the shop.

Eventually, he arrived at the square, standing on top of the marking resembling the one found on spawn points. He put his hands on his hips and scanned the area. Past the Crust Bucket sat a group of familiar inklings. The Rainbow Squids. Except, he was not present. He gulped.

_Would they really accept me after all I've done?_ Everyone he had talked to seemed to think so, but the doubt still remained. He started to remember facing Bonnie on the ship, ready to beat her up. He remembered Octavia jumping in front of her, demanding him to stop. He remembered the fear in those blue eyes...

His friends seemed to notice him, as they looked in his direction and waved. He waved back and, after giving himself some encouragement, approached them.

"Hey," he greeted, putting a hand behind his head.

"Yo!" Perry greeted back, making a gesture in the manner of Pearl. Yuri fist-bumped with the pale-skinned inkling and nodded to acknowledge Roy's presence.

"Hi," said Inigo. Octavia said the same thing after him.

"Hey!" Alexis cheered, smiling. "You're here!"

Bonnie was the last to speak. "Nice to see you."

"N-Nice to see you too," Roy concluded. "Can I... join you?"

"Of course," the boy with the ponytail replied. The red-haired inkling walked up to the empty chair at the table and took a seat. He sat down and placed his elbows on the reflective surface, digging his fists into his cheeks. "Hey," Inigo noted, "you don't look happy." He chuckled. "But then again, you're usually grumpy." The Rainbow Squids, including Roy, laughed at his comment.

"But seriously, what's wrong?" Via followed up.

"Nothing," he lied. "I'm fine."

"C'mon..." she teased, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "You're lying."

"No, I'm not," he emphasized.

The wavy-haired girl sighed. "Alright..." She leaned back in her chair. "Just... call us if you need anything."

"Umm..." He started fidgeting with his fingers. "I'm sorry," Roy apologized, looking at Bonnie. Her eyes widened at his statement. "For trying to hurt you."

"Roy, it's fine," Bon-Bon assured him.

"You sure?" he asked quietly.

She nodded. "Yeah. The past is the past. I wouldn't hate you forever just because you tried to hurt me one time."

"Really?"

"Really." The blue-haired girl stood up and held her arms out. "Wanna hug?"

Teary-eyed, Roy simply smiled and threw himself into Bonnie's arms. The girl was a little offset by his height at first, but once he settled in, she gave him a pat on the back. After a few seconds, they let go, smiling.

"We're glad you're back, Roy," she stated.

"All of us," remarked Inigo.

The red-haired inkling wiped a tear from his eyes. "Guys..."

At last, the Rainbow Squids were reunited.

* * *

**A/N: I hope you guys noticed that the members of Octa Prisma parallel the members of the Rainbow Squids by now. So, by that logic, you would assume that Brayden would be described with Bonnie's skin tone, right? Well, obviously that isn't the case, and there's a reason for that! Anyways, you know what tomorrow is... the one-year anniversary of The Rainbow Squids! As promised, I'll post a new chapter tomorrow, same time as always. Normally, I would have school tomorrow, but due to current events, school is cancelled for the next few weeks. Which only gives me more time to write. Anyways, prepare yourselves for my one-year anniversary speech tomorrow, and Branchwing, out!**


	45. An Unexpected Alliance

_Octavia's PoV_

"Kissing booth!" someone yelled. Today was the Valentine's Day fair, and many of the youth had flocked to the fairgrounds, located in Deca Wings, following school. "One kiss for the low price of 100G?"

"100G?!" Octavia stuck her tongue out, making a sound of disgust. "A kiss should be free!"

"It's a disgrace it even costs money!" Alexis complained.

"Hey, you-"

The younger inkling interrupted her sister before she could finish. "Besides, who wants a yucky kiss anyways?"

"Wait, don't tell me..." Via did a dramatic gasp. "You chose Team Money for the next Splatfest!"

"That's exactly what I did," she confirmed. "I can't stand the thought of attaching myself to someone for the rest of my life."

"What about loving someone as a friend? Family?"

"Well, yeah, I love you, I love Mom and Dad, I love my friends, but..." She shrugged. "Not a boyfriend or a girlfriend."

"Didn't you ask Inigo about kissing Geneva one time?" Speaking of Inigo, tomorrow, the 15th, was his birthday. Octavia still needed to by a gift for him.

"I did?"

"Huh. I could of sworn that happened." She shook her head and started walking towards one of the lines for the kissing booth. "Alexis, even if you _did_ choose Team Money, you're greatly underestimating love!" she shouted.

"And _you're_ underestimating the power of money!" the short-haired girl called back, smirking after she finished her declaration.

* * *

"You squids _all_ chose Team Love?!" Alexis cried out in disbelief. Right now, the Rainbow Squids stood outside the Deca Tower, near where Judd and Li'l Judd usually resided.

"Aw, not _all_ of us," Perry comforted. He walked up to her and threw an arm around her. "Ya got me."

"I guess..." she grumbled.

"This situation is familiar..." Bonnie mused.

"Like..." Via put a hand on her chin, thinking. "Oh!" She turned to face the others. "The Mayo vs. Ketchup Splatfest!"

"I still can't believe Team Mayo won back then," Roy commented.

"Well, now we know mayo is the superior condiment," the girl with the double-bun bragged.

"Ketchup's superior in my heart," Yuri fired back with a smile.

Everyone laughed. "But, Alexis," Perry started, "it's times like these that I'm glad you're part of the Rainbow Squids."

"So you won't be alone?" Alexis snapped.

Purple eyes widened at the comment. "W-Well..."

"Hey, Perry, look at it this way," the boy with spiky hair spoke up. "If Geneva was here, she mighta picked Team Money, and she could have joined you."

Recalling the talk she had with Alexis at Shellendorf Institute a while back, Octavia pointed out, "Yuri, that's not helping."

"It's not my fault she went on a super-long vacation!" he argued.

"It's no one's fault!" Perry blurted. "She just decided to leave for some reason, and she hasn't come back."

"I should have stopped her," Inigo admitted. "I could have convinced her not to go on this vacation!"

"But she said we couldn't _do_ anything to stop her!" the tan-skinned inkling pointed out.

"We still could have tried!" Yuri noted.

"No, we couldn't," Bonnie murmured. "She seemed pretty set in her ways."

"Guys, stop..." Alexis whined. "I just wanna do some turf wars." Everyone stopped arguing and turned to face the short-haired girl. "It's a Splatfest; we're supposed to have fun." She frowned. "But you squids are so caught up in the fact that Geneva's gone."

"She's not gone!" Roy declared. "S-She'll come back; she has to!"

Octavia sighed. "I dunno..." She frowned. "She's been on this vacation since _August_, and we don't know when she'll come back."

"Do you ever wonder..." the beige-skinned girl started, "...If she just used the vacation as an excuse, and she really just wanted to go back home?"

"To the farm?" Inigo questioned. "She wouldn't do that; we're her best friends."

"There's gotta be another explanation," the dark-skinned inkling insisted. "Like, what if she meant to come back sooner, but something happened and she can't?"

"That..." Via looked over at her friend. "...Actually makes sense."

"That still doesn't explain why she went on it in the first place," Bon-Bon remarked.

"Ahem." Octavia looked past Perry and Alexis to see Giovanni standing behind them. In one hand was an Octo Shot Replica, filled with pink ink, and in the other was a green squid-shaped phone. Though he kept a straight face, his eyes suggested he was feeling something else, though she couldn't place a finger on what emotion. "Hello."

The short-haired girl turned around and made a yelping noise on sight of the octoling. "You were _eavesdropping_?!"

"Alexis..." Via whispered to her sister. "Be nice." Louder, she greeted Gio, "Hi."

The boy with the mohawk nodded. "I was eavesdropping, yes," he admitted, "but not for very long."

"What did you hear?" Roy asked him.

"About Geneva," he replied.

"Gio." Inigo pushed his way through his friends to face the octoling. "You said you knew something about Geneva. What?"

"Do you think I will tell you?" he sassed.

"Please?" Yuri begged. "I'll give you one of my Squid Sister CDs!"

In a sudden change in demeanor, Giovanni excitedly asked, "Does it have the Calamari Inkantation?"

His yellow eyes blinked. "Yeah, why?"

He snickered. "Fine. I will tell you what I know." Everyone leaned in closer to listen to him. "Geneva has a secret." His green eyes glanced down at the phone in his hands momentarily, then back to the inklings. "I cannot tell the secret."

"What?!" Roy cried. "Why not?!"

"Augh, you set me up," Yuri noted.

"The secret is dangerous," he explained, "and to tell will lead to bad things."

"C'mon, it can't be _that_ bad," Octavia encouraged.

The octoling sighed. "I learned that the inklings live happy," Gio mused, "and they cannot realize the truth. They prefer to change the truth because they do not want to realize the dangers within."

"You're making this too deep," Perry stated. "Can't we just go do some turf wars and have fun today?"

"Hmph. Fine." He put both items in his hands away and crossed his arms, staying where he stood.

"Remember, Gio. One day," Inigo started, "I _will_ get that secret out of you." He then backed away, towards his other friends on Team Love.

"You may try," the fair-skinned boy challenged with a smirk, "but I will not give up easy."

A silence settled between them, until Alexis broke it by asking, "Why are you still here?"

"My friends choose Team Money," he replied.

"I didn't even know ya had love in ya," Perry joked.

"You are assuming I do not have the feelings," Giovanni lamented, throwing his arms down. "I love to battle, especially against the inklings."

"Ehh, fair point," the pale-skinned inkling remarked.

"Alright, first point of business," Octavia spoke up, pounding a fist into her hand. "We've been sitting here long enough, and there's five of us on Team Love, not counting Gio." She looked between her friends and asked, "So, who's gonna team up with him?" No one answered. The wavy-haired girl turned to the octoling. "Guess I'm going with you."

He sighed. "Fine. I do not have anyone else to battle with."

"Fresh! Let's go!"

After they grabbed their weapons from inside the Deca Tower, the Rainbow Squids said their goodbyes and went into separate elevators. The entire time, Via kept a close eye on Gio, making sure he didn't wander off when she wasn't working. Fortunately, he stayed by her side. He even seemed annoyed by her constant check-ups on me. They stepped into an empty elevator, and a few moments later, two new inklings walked in, holding hands.

One inkling was a boy with light brown skin and blue eyes, wearing a headlamp helmet that made his haircut unclear, along with Annaki Arachno boots on his feet. In his free hand was a Splat Brella. The other inkling was a girl with mocha-colored skin, long hair, and orange eyes, wearing some splash goggles and custom trail boots. Like the boy, she also wielded the Splat Brella. Both inklings wore a pink tee that marked them as members of Team Love.

"You two dating?" Octavia asked the first thing that came to her mind when she saw them.

"Yeah," confirmed the girl.

"We got together on Valentine's Day," noted the boy.

"That's what I thought," she said.

Next, their opponents walked in, and they happened to be familiar faces—Octa Prisma. Oscar, Yvonne, and Iris were all present, wearing golden tees marking them as members of Team Money. The fourth person with them, however, was one she did not recognize. He had tan skin and hair styled into a sidecut, falling on the same side Roy's hair was swept to. Judging by his resemblance to the group of octolings, Octavia could only assume he was an octoling, too.

"Giovanni!" Yvonne exclaimed. "I no do know you will be here!"

"Octavia is with you," Iris mused.

"Enough!" the fair-skinned boy demanded. His green eyes drifted towards the new octoling. "Who is this?"

"Brayden," the octoling with poufy hair responded. "He is my friend."

"Oh, him," he deadpanned.

"She came to me," Brayden spoke up, "because she said you had joined the other team."

"Huh." Giovanni lifted his Octo Shot Replica, pointing it towards the blue-eyed octoling. "This does not mean you are the member of Octa Prisma, Brayden."

"I know," he acknowledged.

The elevator door closed, and they started to descend into the tower. As always, a grate soon opened beneath their feet, and by transforming, they were able to slip through it and travel to the stage they would battle on. Moments later, Octavia emerged on the spawn point of the stage, allowing her to examine it quickly. It was most certainly a Shifty Station—in the center of the valley was a glowing cannon, not unlike the ones she would find during a Cohock Charge.

Quickly, the battle began. Putting the bristles of her Octobrush Nouveau to the ground, Via immediately charged towards the central cannon, wishing to try it out. Just as she was running up the hill, however, someone had beat her to it. With an inkling—or octoling, in this case—inside, the artillery shield glowed a golden color. The bore turned to point directly at her, and anticipating a missile to fire out of it, Octavia jumped out of the way, a projectile soaring past her and exploding into a pile of gold ink further down the slope.

"You know what's weird?" she put the question out there. She put the brush down to the ground again and swung around the cannon. "Being attacked by one of these after using it in Salmon Runs for so long!" Before the person inside could answer, she swung her brush back-and-forth at the shield, and a few seconds later, she heard a masculine scream from within as pink ink splattered around the cannon. Seeing as the cannon was free now, she cheered and hopped inside.

In the cannon, her vision was rather limited. She spun around, looking for a target. Towards the enemy base, she could just barely see ripples in the ink, getting closer. Realizing that she was their target, she shot a missile towards them. It missed as the person dipped into the valley. She looked down the slope. Her next opponent revealed themself to be Brayden. He fired a shot from his Rapid Blaster Pro, and the resulting blast managed to hurt her a little bit. Before she could slip out of the cannon to attack him, he threw a vial of Toxic Mist at the cannon, surrounding her with a golden cloud as she popped out of it. She crawled out of the mist, coughing, but she quickly returned her attention to splatting the tan-skinned octoling. She made the mistake of running straight towards him, however, as two blasts later, she splatted him.

When Via respawned, she noticed another cannon towards her team's side of the map. It was glowing pink, indicating someone was inside. Curious, she decided to swim towards it anyways. As she travelled there, the boy with light brown skin popped out of it and swam away. With the cannon free now, she positioned herself inside it again and started firing. The girl with bronze skin simply shot at the ground, aiming to ink some turf, until she noticed that the central cannon was colored gold again. It then occurred to her that she could possibly hit whoever was inside from where she was standing. She aimed at the center and waited until the bore pointed away from her. Then, she fired. She had to emerge from the shield because she ran out of ink, but she heard the sound of a direct hit all the same. Someone screamed in the distance, and she let out a cheer to show her victory.

Octavia ran back towards the hill, where she joined up with the girl with mocha-colored skin. They looked at each other and nodded to acknowledge each other's presence. Together, they started inking the hill. They reached the empty cannon and started debating who would go inside it. Before they could settle on a decision, someone from the other team popped into the cannon, but sprung from it moments later. Iris launched herself at the two inklings, roller in hand. The girl with the Splat Brella immediately opened her weapon's canopy and rammed it into the roller's wheel. The canopy broke, and both girls were sent flying back. Via's teammate fell down the hill, while Iris barely managed to stay on the top. While she regathered herself, the wavy-haired inkling saw this as a chance to strike. She flung herself at the girl with poufy hair, swinging her Octobrush Nouveau back-and-forth until she splatted.

"Phew," Octavia breathed, wiping some sweat off her forehead. "That was close."

"Easy for you to say!" the other girl exclaimed, emerging next to her. "I did most of the work."

"You saved me, though," she praised. "If you didn't block her with your brella, I would have been splatted for sure!"

"Look, my back hurts from falling down the hill. If that's a noble sacrifice, I don't see the appeal."

"We... have a better chance of winning?"

"We still have like, two minutes left. Things could change quickly."

"Well, we're winning right now, I think, and we're keeping it that way." After she finished speaking, Via pulled out some Tenta Missile launchers and looked around for targets. Locking them onto two people near the cannon on the opponents' side of the map, she pulled the trigger, firing several missiles towards them. Pink streams rained down on them, though she was certain no one was splatted. The girl with long hair followed up by pulling out an Ink Storm, throwing it towards where the missiles had landed. A pink cloud formed in the air, drifting towards the edge of the map.

Suddenly, a golden circle surrounded them, and the girls looked up to see Yvonne, preparing a Splashdown. Octavia started to flee, but her teammate simply aimed her brella up at her and fired a few shots, splatting her before she could complete the special attack.

"Wow," was the only thing the wavy-haired girl could say.

"You make this difficult," she remarked. "C'mon, let's splat another squid."

"That is not needed," added a new voice. Giovanni walked up beside them, his hair glowing pink. "I will splat for you." He swam down the hill, and halfway down it, he emerged from it with an Inkjet. He flew towards their opponents' cannon, firing projectiles down at the ground. Someone threw a splat bomb up at him, but he simply deflected it using the Inkjet's gun. As he battled, Via noticed someone swimming up to the landing marker. From the ink emerged Brayden, who had a vial of Toxic Mist in his hand. As soon as she saw him, she immediately started running towards him with her brush. As soon as the octoling noticed her, his blue eyes became filled with alarm and threw the vial towards her instead.

Octavia took a sharp turn to avoid the cloud that formed, but she swooped back down after it had landed. Brayden tried throwing out another vial to no avail. He was forced to resort to just his blaster, backing up as he attempted to get out of the Octobrush's reach. It was then Gio had returned, throwing a splat bomb at his feet as soon as he landed. Together, the two charged towards Brayden and splatted him, creating a puddle of pink ink where he had exploded.

"Booyah!" Via cheered.

"...Booyah," the octoling with the mohawk grumbled.

"I thought you said you love battling," she remarked, turning to face him.

"I do," he confirmed, "but it is different when I battle friends."

"How so?"

"Normally, I am on the same team as friends," he explained. "I battle against them... I know the tricks of them." Gio opened his mouth to say more, but before he could finish, a splat bomb was launched towards them, forcing them to scatter. Charging towards them was Oscar. He stopped where his bomb had landed to ink the area around his feet with his Inkbrush. Giovanni swam around him and ambushed him, easily splatting the boy with the afro. "Do you see?" he queried at last, green eyes focusing on Via's orange ones.

"No...?"

"I am not surprised." He huffed and turned around to start pushing into enemy territory.

Via sighed. "I swear I'll never understand that squid," she muttered under her breath.

The wavy-haired inkling continued inking turf without interruption. No one even attempted to splat her! Eventually, her hair began to glow again, signifying that she could use her special once more. She super-jumped back to the spawn to survey the stage. Shock crossed her features as she learned that most of the area was covered in pink ink. _Did one of them leave?_ She activated her Tenta Missiles to see how many targets there were. Still four. _Odd..._ She fired her Tenta Missiles on the target closest to her and began swimming towards the target to check it out.

Climbing the incline was Iris. She pushed her Krak-On Roller along, stopping to place a squid beakon from time-to-time. Via hid in the ink, waiting to see what would happen. Oscar super-jumped to one of the beakons and began swinging his Inkbrush furiously. Together, the two octolings managed to create a line of golden ink, separating her team's base from the rest of the stage. The line grew bigger and bigger, and soon, Via realized their attention—they wished to claim some turf while the other team was distracted.

With this realization, the wavy-haired girl emerged from the ink and called, "This way!" She placed a squid beakon where she stood and started running down towards Iris and Oscar. The former quickly spotted her and ceased her actions to attack her. Just as Octavia emerged from the ink, Iris slammed down her roller, splatting her instantly.

When she respawned, so did the boy with light brown skin. "Please help me!" she begged before he could step off the platform.

He stopped and turned around, blue eyes facing hers. "With what?"

"We need to get the other team out of here," she explained, "so we can win!"

"Aren't we already winning?" he questioned.

"Just help me!"

He sighed. "Alright..."

The two traveled down the incline, towards Iris and Oscar. Well, she could only see Iris. The cannon on her side was glowing gold, and Octavia could assume Oscar was occupying it. A missile fired towards them. The boy with the Splat Brella opened its canopy to block it. He was successful, but his shield broke. Growing impatient, Via grabbed the boy's hand and dragged him down towards the poufy-haired octoling.

Her indigo eyes drifted down towards the brella, then at the two inklings. "You no have a shield," she remarked before laughing. "Will the brella to protect now, Octavia?"

"We'll beat you," the bronze-skinned girl declared. "I know it."

"Try." Iris widened her stance, gripping her Krak-On Roller tightly.

"Umm..." The boy tried opening the canopy, but only the frame opened up. While it was open, however, the shield regenerated, and it ended up launching off of the brella, towards the fair-skinned girl. Iris jumped out of the way, causing the canopy to crash into a wall. She jumped up into the air and prepared a vertical swing, of which both inklings rolled out of the way. Some gold-colored ink brushed Octavia's shoulder, causing her to hiss in pain. After the vertical swing, the boy threw a sprinkler at the octoling. It bounced off her shirt and landed in front of her. She was not safe from harm, however—blotches of pink were found on her body from the initial impact, and now the device was spraying more harmful ink onto her. Using this distraction, Via launched herself at Iris and splatted her in one swipe.

"Booyah!" both of them cheered. In the distance, Octavia heard someone else cry out. She looked over at the source to find the mocha-skinned girl spinning her brella in front of the base cannon.

"Aria!" the boy exclaimed, running towards her. He drew the girl into a tight hug. "You did it!" At his sentence, the whistle blew, and fire ceased. The couple began making out by the cannon, causing Via to look away.

After a few minutes of waiting, Giovanni super-jumped to her, much to her surprise. "Gio!" the wavy-haired girl gasped. "You scared me!"

"Sorry," he apologized. "I had needed a good way to come back here."

She tilted her head in confusion. "...Why?"

"Perhaps I should apologize," the octoling started. "I said battling against friends was not fun." With a rare smile, he finished, "I was the wrong. I found the battle fun."

Via smiled back. "Hey, you love battling after all."

Giovanni sighed, exasperated. "That is your only comment?"

"No no! I'm glad you had fun!"

"Good."

It was then Judd and Li'l Judd landed right on the central cannon. They took a few seconds to position themselves on it, and then they began their signature dance. Judd struck out a pink flag, while the smaller cat fell off the cannon with a yowl. Li'l Judd immediately climbed back up it and gave a thumbs-up to show that he was OK.

The octoling with a mohawk looked over at Octavia. "Do you want to do battle again?"

"Since you're asking..." She smiled. "Sure."

* * *

**A/N: HAPPY ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY TO THE RAINBOW SQUIDS! Thank you, everyone, for reading this story, and be ready for more to come. Honestly, I'm surprised myself I could keep up weekly chapters for this long. Well, there was the hiatus, but... that doesn't count ;). As we head into the second half of Season 2, things will only get bigger from here! If my calculations are correct, we should be at the end of Season 3 by the time the second anniversary rolls around. Assuming my plans stay the same, it's crazy how much more you'll know, how many more secrets will be revealed... Well, I can't just tell you what secrets yet, because, well, it's a secret! And telling the secrets would be spoilers. Anyways, once again, thank you all for reading The Rainbow Squids, and here's to another year of their adventures! Branchwing, out!**


	46. Chill Day

_Yuri's PoV_

Yuri sat in front of the TV, controller in hand, playing a fighting video game. His younger brother had come over to watch, now clinging to his leg.

"Augh!" he cried out. "I lost!"

"Why didn't he explode?" his brother, York, asked.

"I knew letting him watch was a bad idea..." the spiky-haired boy muttered in his breath. In a more confident voice, he explained, "York, we explode when we splat because we're made out of ink. Fish aren't made out of ink, so they don't explode."

"OK." The young inkling simply nodded. "Can I play Keeplier now?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Yay!" York swiped the controller out of the dark-skinned teen's hands and proceeded to start playing the popular turf war video game. Yuri rose from the couch and walked to the kitchen. He approached the refrigerator to grab an apple out of it, when his yellow eyes drifted to the note his mother had left for him and his siblings.

'I'll be back on Thursday,' read the note. 'Do your homework, and York—I am not buying you clam bucks. Stop asking.'

He simply smiled and grabbed an apple like he intended to do. He took a bite out of the juicy snack, eating slowly to savor it. He pulled up a stool to the counter and pulled out his phone to look through while he ate.

Just as he finished his apple, the cellphone vibrated as a new text message came through. The text, which was from Perry, asked if Yuri could listen to the purple-haired boy's latest song. Yuri couldn't come help his friend because he had to babysit his siblings, but he still asked to listen to it after it was finished. The spiky-haired inkling put in his earbuds and began listening to the rap song.

The lyrics were relatively simple—just another generic love song. Though Pearl was not mentioned, he just knew his friend would make the idol listen to it in a heartbeat. The beat wasn't anything special, but it was an improvement from Perry's previous songs. _Maybe he's trying something new?_ After the song concluded, he sent the purple-haired boy a text that it was a good song and put his phone away.

Yuri climbed up the steps, towards his room. He opened the door to it, and the first thing he noticed was a ruined box of chocolates on his dresser. He frowned. Jade gave him those chocolates on Valentine's Day—he wasn't sure why, but he took them anyways. Regardless, he was going to eat them at some point. The yellow-haired boy grabbed the heart-shaped box and examined it. A few yellow spots of ink were slowly receding.

_It can't be York, and Yasmin's at her friend's house, so..._ He walked over to the room where the twins slept and began pounding on the door. "Yana!" he demanded. "I know you're in there!"

"Uh..." said his younger sister. "Yana isn't here right now!"

"I have chocolate."

The yellow inkling immediately opened the door and asked, "Where?!" She looked up at Yuri and grimaced. "You tricked me!" she whined.

"Speaking of chocolate, though..." he started, "you ate mine, didn't you?"

"No...?"

"Yeah, you did."

"No, I didn't!"

"Hmm..." A smile came across his face. "I might have to give away the Princess Seapony concert tickets."

"Fine, fine! I ate your chocolates! I'm sorry!" Yana began to pout. "Don't give the tickets away..."

"I wasn't, don't worry." He patted his sister on the head. "Just don't eat my chocolates next time." _At least White Day's not until next month,_ he commented silently.

"I won't! I promise!"

Yuri turned into a squid and sat up, holding out his tentacle. "Tentacle promise?"

Yana picked him up and grabbed it with a stubby hand. "Tentacle promise."

The dark-skinned inkling slipped out of his sister's arms and reformed into a kid. "Good." He walked back to his room, where he cleaned up the box of chocolates, threw it away, and, finally, retired to his bed. He plopped down on it and got out his phone, proceeding to look through Squidsagram. When he found nothing interested, he groaned and put it on his nightstand.

His yellow eyes drifted over to his record player. He rose to his feet and started looking through his vinyl collection. He found the newest one he had—a Squid Sisters record from the days when they still hosted Inkopolis News—and put it into the player. The cheerful jingle of City of Color began playing, and Yuri started to hum along to it.

As the song progressed, he remembered how Callie was still missing. _She has to be _somewhere_, right?_ He refused to believe the possibility that the idol was dead, even if it had been about six months since her initial disappearance. That being said, it had been about six months since the Great Zapfish disappeared, too. Yet, Inkopolis showed no signs of losing power. _Hmm..._

Yuri walked over to his desk and opened his laptop. He sat down in his chair and began searching up conspiracy theories out of curiosity. He found a forum discussing and began reading through them. The most popular conspiracy theory? Callie was kidnapped by the Octarians. The notion that the Great Zapfish was captured by the Octarians was a popular theory as well, as well as one detailing how the Squid Sisters are actually secret agents.

The yellow-haired boy laughed at their absurdity. _They're just conspiracy theories,_ he thought. _None of these are true... right?_ Regardless, he still liked looking them up. He always thought of them to be pretty funny.

More time passed, and Yuri found himself yawning. He came to the conclusion that he needed to take a nap and closed his laptop, plopped onto his bed, and threw a blanket over himself, wishing to fall asleep. When he woke up again, he felt a chill and rubbed his arms. He looked down at himself to find that someone had taken off his blanket... and his shorts.

"Oh..." He got up and started walking downstairs, where he found the twins running around, playing with paper Inkbrushes. At the kitchen counter sat Yasmin, who was watching them in amusement.

"Yuri!" York ran up to him, wearing pants that were clearly too big for him, and tapped his nose with the paper brush. "Wanna play?"

"I'm the hero, and York's the villain!" Yana added. She was using Yuri's blanket as a cape.

"Yasmin's the princess," his brother whispered, pointing to the young inkling. She looked up at the dark-skinned inkling and waved.

"Can I... have my pants back?" he asked.

"No!" the youngest sister replied. "You're gonna be the Underwear Dragon!" She picked up a Princess Seapony mask and threw it at him.

Yuri looked at the mask for a few moments before putting it over his face and striking an intimidating pose. "Roar! You thought York the Terrible was the final boss? No, it is I, the Underwear Dragon!"

"Umm, I'm York the Strong," the boy corrected.

"I, Yana the Good, will defeat you!" the girl boasted. She poked the paper brush at her elder brother's chest, causing him to fall down dramatically.

"Oh no! I have been defeated!" Yuri exclaimed. "I guess you can save Princess Yasmin now."

"Yay!" Yana ran up to Yasmin and hugged her.

"I'm saved," Yasmin cheered unenthusiastically, pumping a fist.

"Let's do it again!" Yana pleaded.

"Alright, but _I'm_ the hero this time," York announced.

"Will you be the Underwear Dragon again, Yuri?" his youngest sister asked him.

With a smile, Yuri replied, "Sure."

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! Just a cute, fluffy chapter for today. I feel like out of all the Rainbow Squids, Yuri appears the least, so I wanted a chapter just to focus on him at home, with his siblings. Now, next chapter... next chapter is the final Hero Mode chapter! Isn't that sad? Regardless, I'll make sure to make it big and grand for you all. Stay tuned for next week, and Branchwing, out!**


	47. Let's Finish This!

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Hero Mode.**

**Some of Marie's, Sheldon's, Callie's, and DJ Octavio's dialogue are taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

It was time.

Time to save the Great Zapfish. Time to save Callie. After six months of nothing, Inkopolis would finally have both their greatest power source and their beloved pop star back. Or, at least, Alexis hoped so.

"You sure you're ready?" Marie asked back at Tentakeel Outpost.

"I am," the younger inkling confirmed. "Are you?"

The idol nodded. "Yeah. Sheldon's setting up the truck. But Four, remember." Her golden eyes looked down at the bronze-skinned girl. "You're the only one that can defeat DJ Octavio and save the Great Zapfish." She smiled. "And Callie."

"I know." Alexis gave a nod. "That's why I have to try my best. So I can save everyone."

Marie gave the agent a quick hug before placing her hands on her shoulders. "Go, now. I'll be there as fast as I can. See you soon."

"Mhm." The orange-haired inkling prepared to super-jump, and moments later, she flew through the air, towards the cavern hosting Cephalon HQ. She landed on the boss kettle, which was stationed on a metallic platform decorated with various stickers. Several glowing, purple dots surrounded the pillow the kettle rested on. From within, she could hear the roars of a crowd, though she did not know who they were cheering for. She peered through the grate and took a deep breath. _Here I go._ She turned into a squid and slipped into the boss kettle.

As Alexis travelled deeper within, she felt the area shift around a little bit before hearing something lock above her, which only heightened her fear. Soon, however, she spawned in the kettle, shaking some green ink off of her. In the background, she could see various lights in the audience, and right in the middle of the stage stood a figure. In her hands, she held the Hero Shot—Sheldon asked her to use it beforehand. The short-haired inkling stepped onto the launchpad, which brought her right to the arena.

"Let's go, Agent 4!" Marie cheered over the headset. Agent 4 landed onto the pavement and took a few steps towards the figure. She stopped when she realized that this was another inkling. A familiar inkling—she couldn't remember who—with long black hair tipped with the hot pink color of her ink. The stage she stood on caved a little bit, and speakers lining the frame were silent. A few seconds passed as Alexis absorbed this information, and then Marie let out a saddened gasp. "Wait... Is that...?" Realization struck the agent—the grey-haired inkling's earlier prediction was correct. "_CALLIE?!_" the idol cried out in anguish.

At the mention of her name, Callie looked over her shoulder, donning a poker face and some shades not unlike the ones enemy octolings wore. She pivoted around to face Alexis, crossing her arms.

"I told you to leave..." the black-haired inkling said, her shades flashing a colorful diamond pattern.

"Callie... Why?" Marie murmured, her voice cracking.

Striking a pose, Callie announced, "Now you leave me no choice..." She slashed her arm through the air and shouted, "Prepared to be rocked!" She pointed her fingers towards the air. "Hey, DJ!"

The stage began to shake, and the background lit up behind the pop star as she rose into the air. Occupying the level below her was a red-violet octopus wearing a black-and-gold helmet and golden shutter shades. A green scar glowed on one of his muscular tentacles, not unlike the tentacles controlling Octobosses. Wasabi stalks occupied his turntables, and attached to the front of the mechanism were two golden fists, letters in the Octarian language engraved on their knuckles.

There was something else that caught Alexis's attention, though. Hanging off the bottom of the machine was none other than the Great Zapfish. The machine rattled as the creature was sucked into it, energizing the machine. It crackled with electricity, prompting a horn to sound and the crowd to cheer. A jumbotron in the background displayed some subtitles in both Octarian and Inkling, which read, 'DJ Octavio feat. Callie: Octobot King II.'

"I'll save you," Alexis muttered her breath. "I promise."

"Octavio in da houuuuuuuuse!" the octopus immediately introduced himself. He seemed to be fluent in the Inkling language, but like the octolings of Octa Prisma, he spoke with an accent.

The girl's immediate response was to laugh. "Hold up, _you're_ DJ Octavio?" the short-haired inkling perplexed._ I thought he'd be more menacing. This guy is laughable at best!_

"Gyah ha ha!" DJ Octavio laughed. "You think I'm a pushover? No wonder my troops call you the Dauntless. Well, no matter: Take this—I remixed Callie's brain!"

"Huh?!" Agent 4 gasped for more reasons than one.

Callie snickered. "Time for our first song of the night: Bomb Rush Blush!"

"Time to drop the beatdown!" the disc jockey followed.

A tune so upbeat, yet ominous, began to play as the black-haired idol told him, "Spin it, DJ!" As the machine floated in the air, one of its golden fists began to glow magenta as a hissing escaped from it. It propelled itself towards her, causing Alexis to jump out of the way to dodge it. The fist dug itself into the pavement before retracting back into the machine.

"What?!" she gasped. With a running start, she tried going towards DJ Octavio, only to be blocked by some sort of barrier once she was close enough. "Ow..." she muttered, rubbing her head as she fell to the ground. Magenta ink dripped off of her hoodie. The machine backed up and began to shoot another fist at Alexis.

"Shoot it!" Marie commanded.

_Shoot it?_ The bronze-skinned girl inked a spot of green around her feet before firing her Hero Shot at the incoming fist. She backed up, now trudging in Octarian ink as it got closer and closer. Just before it could hit her, the fist glowed green and started twirling right back at the disc jockey, causing a bunch of dough balls to fall out of it. Callie almost lost her balance, but she continued singing anyways.

"_Graaahk!_" DJ Octavio cried.

"That's it, Agent 4! Show no mercy!" the grey-haired inkling cheered.

Alexis threw a curling bomb towards the opposite side of the arena, in hopes of creating a gap between her and the Octobot King II. She started inking the ground around her, when another fist was shot at her. She started shooting at it only to find she was out of ink. She hid in the ink to refill her ink tank, and the golden fist landed next to her. She emerged early to start inking it, only for it to retract back into the machine. DJ Octavio launched the other fist next, but this time, Alexis was prepared. She shot at the other fist until it glowed green and rammed into the machine.

Now, both fists were glowing a magenta color, and moments later, they were shooting towards her. Agent 4 stepped to the side and finished off the fist she had previously inked before focusing on the second one. It dug into the ground again, though spots of ink still dripped off of it. The machine heaved as it tried to pull the golden fist out, allowing her to cover it up and send it straight back to the octopus.

"Blushing faces covered in pink! / Rushing bombs, exploding ink!" Callie sang as giant splat bombs rimmed with gold spat out of the machine. Alexis threw out a curling bomb again and swam to the side in an attempt to dodge them. Unfortunately, one of them landed right on top of her and exploded, breaking her hero suit. A puddle of green ink surrounded where she would have splatted. Her swimming slowed to a crawl as the Octobot King II's fists began to glow again.

"Watch out for his spinning punches," Sheldon advised. "They can't be bounced back!"

"Huh?!" The fists spun faster and faster until they launched, heading straight towards Alexis. "Ah!" She swam as fast as she could, narrowly avoiding the impact of the fists. After they landed, her hero suit regenerated, and she emerged from the green ink. The fists withdrew back into the machine and immediately did DJ Octavio send out another one. This time, Alexis was ready as she charged towards it, pressing a finger against the trigger. As the fist become greener and greener with ink, she tried to be dramatic and send it off with a kick, but she failed. Her foot recoiled when it hit the incoming object. She stumbled backwards, and while she heard the octopus cry out in the background, all she could focus on was the sharp pain in her leg.

"Four!" Marie gasped.

"It's nothing I can't handle, Marie," she told her. "Just stick to the plan!" Another fist planned to smash her into the ground, but she pointed her Hero Shot at it and fired it until it barreled back towards Octavio.

"_Hnnng!_ Come on, Octavio!" Callie egged.

"_Snap out of it, Callie!_" the grey-haired inkling begged. As she finished her words, another wave of splat bombs came flying out of the machine. As they neared, Agent 4 now noticed that they had a squid design on them. Callie's name was written in bold underneath the graphic.

_Oh no..._ The short-haired girl gulped. _Can we still save her?_ She shook her head and turned into a squid to evade the bombs. _I can't start doubting myself now. Everyone's counting on me. Callie... The Great Zapfish... Inkopolis... I have to save them. I can't let anyone down._

In the ink, her leg pain had dulled, but when she emerged, in flared right back up again. The two golden fists started spinning around again, and they launched towards her. Alexis was once again forced to throw out a curling bomb and dodge to the side. DJ Octavio immediately followed up by launching two normal punches at the same time. She quickly sent one of them flying back towards her while the other dug into the ground. She scrambled back towards it, but it managed to pull itself out in time and retreat back to the Octobot King II. A few seconds passed, and the first fist was once again flying towards her. Determined, she shot the fist down, and with this punch, Octavio flew out of his machine, tumbling towards the ground.

"Octavio is exposed!" Marie exclaimed. "This is your chance, Agent 4!"

Agent 4 threw out another curling bomb, which bumped off of the octopus. She emerged right in front of his eyes and started inking him up the same green color the mechanical fists were covered with. Soon, DJ Octavio was the one barreling into his machine, dough balls flying out on impact.

Callie regained her balance and adjusted her shades, shaking her head. "_Hmph,_" she scoffed.

"Callie!" the idol called out. "It's me," she said. She took a deep breath and continued, "Your cousin, Marie. Try to remember!"

The black-haired inkling simply shrugged off her cousin's attempt to reach out to her and shouted, "DJ!" She slashed her hand through the air again and demanded, "_Drop that spicy wasabi beat!_" With her final words, the ink dissipated from the concrete, making for a confetti effect.

DJ Octavio repositioned himself in the operator's seat, steadying his wasabi stalks on the turntables. "_Gyah ha ha!_" he laughed. "Comin' with that hotness!"

"Don't hold back, Agent 4!" commanded Marie. The Octobot King II started to rise, which prompted the idol to gasp and exclaim, "He's rising up!"

"Is that a bad thing?!" Alexis asked, frantic as the machine prepared to send out another punch.

"Depends on your definition of 'bad.'" The fist started to come crashing down on the short-haired girl, but before it could connect with her, she started firing at it. Like most other times, it soon turned green and spun back towards DJ Octavio. Trying not to fall off, the octopus held onto his seat and spun a disc with a stalk of wasabi, prompting the next fist to come out of the machine, towards Alexis. It came so quickly that Alexis barely had time to react. She jumped to the side as it dug into the ground. After it landed, she tried inking it, but it retracted back before she could completely cover it.

"Yeah, it's a bad thing," she concluded.

Instead of sending out another punch, however, the Octobot King II hovered back towards the ground, and a tray rose from above the bottom speakers. Alexis recognized its contents as the dough balls that sometimes fell out of the machine whenever Octavio was hit. A moment or two later, they popped out of the tray, towards the bronze-skinned girl.

"Something's coming!" Marie noted. "Can you shoot it down?"

"I don't know, but I'll try." She tried shooting one of them, and it didn't take long for it to explode into pieces. "Huh, you're right." Before she could shoot down another one, one of the dough balls landed in her arms. A pink octopus tentacle was stuck through it, hanging limply. Combined with the dark sauce lathered over the top, it actually looked... quite tasty. Letting her hunger consume her, she opened her mouth to take a bite out of it when it suddenly exploded into a whirlwind of magenta ink, breaking her hero suit. She was pushed back a few inches, and looking around, she found herself surrounded by the same twisters. Through them, she spotted one of the fists spinning, slinging droplets of green ink everywhere. She barely managed to jump out of the way of the spinning punch, though to her dismay, her hero suit had yet to recover.

_I can't give up,_ she told herself. _I have to keep going._ She rose to her feet, wiping some magenta ink off her shoulder. Her suit regenerated, and she clenched the Hero Shot tighter. DJ Octavio decided to raise up into the air again and send out two punches at the same time. Alexis targeted the fist that had previously spun at her before, making up for her failure to cover it up last time a normal punch was sent out. It knocked into Octavio, allowing her to attack the other fist. She finished inking it up while it was stuck in the ground, sending it back. While the octopus recovered, she took it upon herself to start painting the land around her.

Still remaining in the air, the machine starting spinning one of its fists again, and it flew towards Agent 4 again, followed by a normal fist. She successfully dodged the first punch and immediately started to focus on the other one. Just before it could retract, it glowed green and rammed into the Octobot King II once more. Following this, it returned to the ground and started sending out giant suction bombs.

"Another Bomb Rush!" the grey-haired inkling exclaimed. The suction bombs this time were rimmed with gold, much like the splat bombs. Again, Callie's name was written on the front of them, but they also had a design with angry squid eyes and sharp eyelashes above the writing. She had no doubts that those eyes were supposed to represent the black-haired idol's eyes. Throwing out a curling bomb, Alexis was forced to flee them as she watched them cover the arena back up in magenta ink.

Following the Bomb Rush, the machine rose into the air again, and one of the fists began to glow magenta. Once again, the short-haired inkling took it down quickly.

"_Graaahk!_" DJ Octavio screamed upon impact.

"Agent 4!" Marie called to get the agent's attention. "I'll be there soon. Hold out just a little longer!"

"Got it." Octavio next prepared two spinning punches for Alexis, which she dodged with the help of a curling bomb. After they returned to the machine, it hissed as magenta ink spat out of it. It was pushed backwards as a waterfall of ink started ejecting from its front speakers, fire spitting out of its exhaust pipes. _This _can't_ be good._

"He's gonna hit you with his shower attack!" the idol warned. "Dodge to the side!" Her advice came a little too late, however, as the shower promptly ran over Agent 4 and broke her hero suit again. Over her headphones, she heard Marie groan in frustration.

As one would predict, the Octobot King II rose into the air again and sent out more punches, one normal and one spinning. She had to dodge both of them in order not to get splatted. After they withdrew back, her hero suit recovered, and she could once again go on the offensive. DJ Octavio sent out a normal punch again, which Alexis quickly deflected. He returned to the ground again and sent out another wave of dough balls. Smarter, now, she began shooting down as many as she could, which was not much. After they exploded into ink twisters, he sent out two more punches. She deflected one, but was unable to deflect the other. Afterwards, the octopus once again tried his shower attack, which she successfully dodged. All while Callie continued her song, seemingly unfazed by the constant attacks on the machine.

Following one final punch, DJ Octavio was sent flying out of the machine again. "Octavio's down!" Marie informed. "It's all you, Agent 4!" Though her leg pain was fading, she still decided to swim up to him and cover him up in green ink, eventually sending him back to the machine and slamming into it, causing a small explosion in her color.

Up above her, Alexis heard the whirring of some engine. She looked up, and flying around the Octobot King II was a Squid Sisters truck, complete with thrusters emitting green fire and a stage on its roof. She spotted Sheldon in the driver's seat, and Marie on the stage with a fancy charger, presumably a Hero Charger, in her hands.

"I'm here!" the grey-haired inkling announced. "Hold on!"

She aimed her charger at Callie, and a few seconds later, a stream of lime green ink came flying out of it. It hit the black-haired inkling's head, knocking her shades and some of her hat off.

"_NOOOOO!_" DJ Octavio cried. "The hypnoshades!" Looking up at the other idol, Alexis saw specks of lime green ink flying around her head as she gripped it.

"_YES!_" Marie cheered. "That was a direct hit with my special low-tide ink!"

"Unnhhh..." Callie groaned.

"Now, Agent 4! While Callie is stunned!" the grey-haired idol demanded. "Make DJ Octavio pay!" As the ink cleared from the battlefield, she started to sing a more desperate rendition of Tide Goes Out.

"Time to turn the tables!" the octopus announced. "Spicy speed mode!"

Marie interrupted her song to say, "He's fast! Watch out for his dash punch!"

Like Marie had said, the machine dashed to the side, preparing to send another fist at Alexis. She strafed to the side, preparing to ink up the fist and send it back to DJ Octavio. And she did just that. As dough balls fell out of the machine, it flew itself back towards the center of the arena. During the downtime, she started inking up the arena some more. The Octobot King II's next attack was another Suction Bomb Rush, proceeding to send out even more bombs than before. The girl just barely managed to escape the explosions without her hero suit breaking, though magenta ink now dripped off her back.

"Agent 4, keep it up!" the grey-haired inkling encouraged. "I'm gonna sing from here!"

Immediately after the suction bombs finished exploding, the machine rose back into the air and prepared another spinning punch to send at Agent 4. She swam past it to focus on inking up the punch that followed. The punch collided with the machine once more, and as it flew down to send out another dash punch, Callie suddenly interjected Tide Goes Out with her own singing, drowning out Marie's voice. Feeling quite startled about this, she neglected the need to dodge the punch, causing her to fly back and her hero suit to break. On the jumbotron, Marie, who was the current focus, showed shock and worry in her features, causing her own singing to falter a little bit. Yet, she kept on going.

Alexis pushed herself off the ground with a growl, her orange eyes narrowing as she shot a glare towards DJ Octavio. He took this chance to start sending out another round of dough balls. One was flying straight towards her, but she kicked it away with her good leg. Before the balls could even explode into twisters, the machine rose back into the air, preparing two fists to hit the inkling with. Without a second thought, she threw a curling bomb in front of her and swam past the fists. The bomb bounced off the barrier and met its end when it collided with one of the twisters. Alexis, on the hand, emerged from the ink trail after the golden fists had landed. They returned to the Octobot King II, and afterwards, the agent's hero suit repaired. It flew back a little, where the eyes of Alexis and Octavio met.

"You're scum, you know that?" she snapped at him. "Stealing the Great Zapfish _and_ kidnapping Callie? And on top of that, you're trying to kill _me_ now."

Octavio laughed. "You tore through my defenses, and now you resist my sick beats, just to save one fish and one squid?" he sneered and pounded a wasabi stalk on the turntable. "You slimy little hipster!" Another fist shot towards Alexis, which she started inking. "So naïve, thinking you could lay the beatdown on _me_? Well, no matter." The fist he sent out soon punched his machine, causing him to cry out in pain. Once he repositioned himself, he rose into the air and declared, "I'll spin you into your grave!"

"We'll see about that, Octavio," Alexis made her own declaration. "You _will_ fall today!" She walked backwards, inking the area around her, as he sent out two spinning punches, landing just in front of her feet and splattering ink on her clothes. The fists returned to him once more, and once again, he returned to the ground and dashed to the side to prepare another punch. She shot it down as quickly as he sent it.

During the instrumental break, Marie cried with a voice choked with emotion, "_WAKE UP CALLIE!_" Looking at the jumbotron would allow one to see that tears had formed in the corner of her starry golden eyes. The black-haired idol's only response was to let out a groan of pain. Meanwhile, DJ Octavio performed another dash punch, one Alexis took down as well. After it collided with the machine, he sent another spinning punch, which the short-haired inkling narrowly avoided. Soon, the Octobot King II rose into the air again, magenta ink pouring out of its speakers.

_Another shower attack,_ she quickly realized. While she swam away, the octopus laughed as he sped across the arena, deadly ink trailing behind him. Following the attack, he sent out more giant suction bombs, followed by another dash punch. Overwhelmed, Agent 4 swam towards the edge of the arena, making her unable to react to his attack. After the bombs were gone, DJ Octavio dashed to the side again, this fist spinning around rapidly. _Would this be a... spinning dash punch?_ she wondered. _Guess it is._

Octavio followed up his spinning punch with a normal punch. It crashed into the ground, giving Alexis just enough time to ink it up. It glowed green and punched into the machine, just like before. He immediately followed up with another dash punch, one she took down as well. Afterwards, he sent out the dough balls again, and she shot some of them down again. After the ink towers formed, DJ Octavio sent out one final dash punch, one that caused him to fall out of the Octobot King II.

"Octavio's down!" Marie exclaimed. "Get him, Agent 4!"

"My pleasure!" Running towards him was a mistake, as her leg pain flared up again by the time she reached him. Regardless, Alexis inked him up with her Hero Shot, causing him to fly back into the machine once more. While DJ Octavio recovered from the devastating blow Alexis dealt, Sheldon drove the truck in front of the Octobot King II, where Marie could face Callie head-on.

"My... My head..." the black-haired idol moaned, squinting to reveal the same starry eyes her cousin had.

"The low-tide ink is working!" the grey-haired idol exclaimed, hope flashing in her starry eyes. It was then she pulled out a radio with a squid design embedded in the middle. Throwing her hand out, she pled, "Callie! Remember!" A poppy beat started up as she set it down. "That heavenly melody!"

"The one and only..." Callie started. Trembling, she reached her hand out towards her cousin. She opened her eyes, now filled with realization. "I... I remember..." she muttered. Now, with a running start, she leaped off the stage, towards the flying truck.

"YEAH!"

A pink glow surrounded her, and hot pink ink trailed off her as she somehow changed into the stage outfit everyone knows and loves. Landing onto the stage set up on the truck, Marie helped Callie to her feet, and the Squid Sisters began to sing a familiar tune as the beat dropped.

"_Ya, weni, marei, mirekyarahire._"

_Wait, I know this song!_ Alexis realized.

"_Juri, yu mirekerason._"

"_The Squid Sisters are back!_" Sheldon cheered.

"_Kire, hyari, yoriherahe nyurahera / Nunnyara unera yurawera nyimerani._"

Agent 4 dropped her Hero Shot as one of Sheldon's drones flew overhead, carrying a case. It stopped in front of her and dropped it, allowing her to open it up. Inside was a peculiar weapon.

"A... Rainmaker?" she perplexed.

"Yes!" Sheldon confirmed. "I brought you a modded version of the Rainmaker! You know how to use it, right? Hold down the trigger to build pressure, then release it to shoot an ink missile."

"A modded version, huh?" She smiled. "I can work with this."

"All right, Agent 4," the horseshoe crab started. "Show me what you can do with that modified Rainmaker!"

DJ Octavio's eyes focused on the inkling, and his eyes widened on the sight of the golden weapon. "Rainmaker!" he gasped. He flew up into the air, making him impossible to hit him from the ground.

Before Alexis could ask anything, a green launchpad appeared in the center of the stage. "Follow him, Agent 4!" Marie commanded. Now that she was reunited with Callie, she sounded... happier. "End this!"

She turned into a squid on the launchpad, sending her up towards some ride rails. In an effort to relieve her leg pain, she remained in her squid form in the rail.

"Charge up the Rainmaker, and rain on Octavio's parade!" Sheldon exclaimed.

"Hmm..." _How will I hit him?_ She emerged and held down the trigger. The Rainmaker charged up in a much shorter period of time than the original, allowing her to safely deflect the incoming punch from the Octobot King II. A stream of green landed on the fist, and moments later, it exploded, making the fist turn around and hit the machine. After it collided, she turned back into a squid and jumped to the outer ride rail.

DJ Octavio flew more towards the center, where one of the machine's fists began to spin faster and faster, accompanied by a pink glow. "Agent 4! Jump to dodge the spinning punches!" Marie advised.

The spinning punch launched towards the short-haired girl, and she reformed into a kid to leap up into the air and dodge it. As a consequence, her pain returned once again when she landed, causing her to hide back in the ink. Much to her dismay, she found herself jumping again due to Octavio sending out yet another spinning punch. He followed up the attack by dashing to the side, sending out a normal punch. She charged up the Rainmaker and sent it back, hitting the machine once again.

This pattern of attacking and dodging continued for a while, considering that DJ Octavio did not have much to spice up his attacks. On the other hand, now that she did not have to focus on moving around and inking the stage that much, she noticed some additional details about the area. While the jumbotron had previously displayed images of DJ Octavio and Callie, they now focused on the Squid Sisters on their truck. Their logo even showed up every now-and-then. Even the octopus seemed to be enjoying it, as he danced around while operating the Octobot King II.

Contrary to his actions, DJ Octavio growled, "_I can't...resist the groove... any longer!"_ He slammed one of his wasabi sticks into the wall of the machine's interior. "Splat you, Squid Sisterrrrrrrs!"

In response to his words, Alexis jumped to the inner ring and quipped, "Not so spicy now, are you, Octavio?"

"_You dare challenge me?!_" he roared at her. He sent out another spinning punch, which Agent 4 simply jumped over. "I'll fry you into calamari!" The machine dashed to the side and sent a normal punch towards her. One fully-charged shot of the Rainmaker later, it rammed into it.

"Face it, you've lost," she sneered. "Who's naïve now?" He sent out one final punch at her, which she deflected with one final shot. Upon impact, sparks flew across the Octobot King II as it short-circuited and crashed to the ground with a loud thud. Her heart skipped a beat as she realized what just happened. "Yes!" she cheered.

"Agent 4!" Marie called to get her attention. "Head for Octavio from the inner ride rail!"

"Will do!" Turning into a squid, she awaited her arrival at the new ride rail, which she jumped into when she reached it. From inside, she looked down at Octavio, who was flailing his limbs around, trying to get himself off the machine.

"Now! Jump and hit him with the Rainmaker!" On Marie's words, Alexis emerged from the ride rail in her kid form, the golden weapon in her hands. She slammed the Rainmaker on the octopus, causing a green glow. The Spicy Calamari Inkantation stopped, and the truck the Squid Sisters rode flew down to the ground. Agent 4 hopped off of the broken machine and took a few steps towards the truck.

"Guh..." DJ Octavio moaned as the backdrop behind him glowed several different colors. "Not again... Cross-face to blaaaaaaack..."

The Octobot King II groaned as it trembled, a green light glowing from within. It swelled before exploding into a huge mess of green ink, practically covering everyone in the arena, including the audience. Thankfully, no one seemed to have splatted, including the disc jockey, who now laid unconscious in front of the machine's remains.

Alexis heard a moan from behind her, and she turned around to watch Callie struggle to stay on her feet. She threw an arm around Marie's shoulder, while Marie caught her before she could fall.

"You OK?" the grey-haired inkling asked her cousin.

The black-haired inkling nodded. "Yeah..." She gave a weak smile. "Getting hit by that weird ink just threw me off." Her smile grew. "But I'm back!"

Marie pulled her into a hug. "Welcome back, Callie," she said, a tear escaping her eyes.

Callie, on the other hand, burst out into tears. "Ohh, Marie!" she cried. "I missed you!"

"Me too," she confessed. "Me too."

They let go, where the black-haired lady proceeded to say, "Let's never split up again."

"Ha." The grey-haired lady wiped another tear from her starry eyes. "Just what I was gonna say."

Sheldon, who had gotten out of the truck, pumped a fist and cheered, "Squid Sisters forever!"

"That's right!" Callie agreed. "Squid Sisters forever!"

Alexis walked up to the group and looked at Marie, who nodded. "Squid Sisters forever!" both of them cheered.

After the exclamation, the bronze-skinned girl looked over her shoulders and saw it. The Great Zapfish. It appeared to be unharmed, and it was looking straight into her orange eyes, electricity crackling off of its whiskers. She approached it and placed a hand on its forehead. Seeing as it wasn't electrocuting her, she placed her forehead against it as well.

"I saved you," she whispered. "I never thought I could, but look at me now." She stroked a hand on its dark blue, slippery skin. "DJ Octavio can't harm you anymore. If he tries to, I'll make sure he doesn't. You can go back to Inkopolis, and everything can be normal again." She smiled. "Finally."

Not much could be said out of the Great Zapfish's perpetual smile, but it seemed to have understood her message. It bowed its head, as if allowing her to climb on.

She looked back at the others, who all seemed surprised at the events.

"Wow, you must be something if it's letting you ride it," Callie commented.

"It wouldn't let even Agent 3 ride it!" Marie added, giving one of her signature smiles. "And she's the one who saved it the first time!"

"Go ahead, uh..." the black-haired idol started. "Agent 4, was it?"

The grey-haired idol nodded. "We'll deal with Octavio. Just get back to Inkopolis."

Alexis climbed onto the Great Zapfish, resting just behind its head. "Will I ever see you again?" she asked, frowning.

"Oh, yeah," Callie replied.

"You can still visit us," Marie followed. "It's not like we're gonna lock you out forever. Besides, there's still stuff to do in Octo Canyon."

"No matter what, there's still gonna be Octarians here."

"Until they decide to move somewhere else, that is."

The group laughed. "Alright, see ya," Alexis said as the giant fish rose into the air.

"Bye!" the Squid Sisters finished, waving.

The Great Zapfish shot out of the dome, breaking into the darkness that was Cephalon HQ. It looked around before towards the opening that led into the cavern in the first place. For the first time in a while, Alexis saw the blue sky again. It actually looked prettier, now that she had spent months collecting zapfish from the Octarians' lairs. She surveyed the canyon, seeing the rocky formations that formed tentacles and octopuses. The Great Zapfish hovered over the area briefly before flying back towards Inkopolis.

The fields soon became populated with houses, and soon those houses became an assortment of compacted buildings. Finally, they arrived in Inkopolis Square. The Great Zapfish lowered itself towards the ground to allow the bronze-skinned inkling to hop off. The bottom of her shoes touched the pavement, and she looked back at the creature, which stared at her with its big eyes for a few more moments.

"Thanks," she said, "for everything."

The Great Zapfish curled around the Deca Tower once more, causing it to glow with energy. As it returned to its rightful place, she heard murmurs from her fellow inklings.

"Hey, it's the Great Zapfish!"

"The Great Zapfish is back!"

"Who's that girl?"

"Man, I wish I could ride the Great Zapfish!"

A few moments later, she saw two figures emerge from the manhole that led to Octo Canyon, one with pink ink, the other with lime green ink. Callie and Marie. They walked up to Alexis, smiling. As expected, more comments escaped the other inklings' mouths.

"It's the Squid Sisters!"

"The Squid Sisters are back!"

"Callie's back!"

"Where was she?"

The grey-haired idol scanned the short-haired girl briefly and whispered to her, "You should probably change out of that."

The bronze-skinned inkling looked down at herself and realized she was still wearing the hero suit. "Oh, yeah. I should probably do that." She dashed into the Deca Tower, towards the dressing rooms. She closed the door behind her and pulled out her normal clothes. She changed her ink color back to orange as she let out a sigh of relief. She was actually glad she still wore the hero suit when she arrived; if she had arrived in normal attire, her friends would likely recognize her and start asking questions. Yet, by arriving in hero attire, people would start questioning who she was and why she rode the Great Zapfish back to Inkopolis. It wasn't a great outcome, either, but it was better than the other option.

Now that she was back in her normal outfit—a bobble hat, a pirate-stripe tee, and FishFry sandals, she returned outside, where a crowd had gathered around the newly-reunited Squid Sisters. She made her way towards the front of crowd, where she could watch whatever they had planned. In the corner of her eyes, she noticed that even Pearl and Marina had stepped out of the studio to watch the commotion. Upon sight of Alexis, Marie glanced over towards her and winked.

"Hey there, squidkids!" Callie started, chipper as ever. The crowd quieted down to listen to her speak. "It's me, Callie! It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"It's been a rough day," Marie added.

"Anyways, I'm here to announce that I'm back, and so are the Squid Sisters, better than ever!" she continued.

"Once Callie's recovered from... recent events, we'll be working on a new song."

"So, we'll see you soon, and remember..."

"Stay fresh!" the two of them concluded, striking their signature pose.

The crowd cheered as they walked back to the manhole they arrived from. Alexis made her way over to them, expectant. At first, they seemed to ignore her, but then the grey-haired inkling looked over at her, smiling.

"Hey, Sheldon told me to tell you he wants you," she informed. "I wouldn't keep him waiting, Alexis."

_Why does _Sheldon_ want me?_ she wondered. "OK," the orange-haired inkling replied. "I'll go there now."

The bronze-skinned girl started walking to Ammo Knights, where the horseshoe crab had just switched the sign from 'Closed' to 'Open'. He scurried back behind the counter, and Alexis walked into the shop.

"Hey, Sheldon," she greeted.

"Ah!" He looked around the shop before saying, "Four! I have something to give you!" He pulled out a black case and set it on the counter. "Open it up!"

Inside were a pair of familiar dualies. "The Hero Dualies!" she marveled. Her orange eyes focused on the horseshoe crab and she puzzled, "You're giving them to me?"

"Well, it's your signature weapon, isn't it?" he replied. "Like how Callie's is the Hero Roller, Marie's is the Hero Charger, and Agent 3's is the Hero Shot! Original versions, of course. Besides, you can use them to gain even more pratical battle data!"

"Isn't this a little OP?" she questioned. "They're upgraded, so they're much more powerful than some plain old dualies."

"That's where the power of technology comes in! I placed a special limiter on it, so that whenever you take it into a battle here, it'll revert it into something less powerful, making it functionally the same as the Splat Dualies. I even gave it its kit, too. It's the same process I use for the other agents' weapons to make them eligible for battle. Oh! And I've also included a setting that will change the color of the lights on it, too. Right now I've set it to blue, but you can make them red, like its upgraded version, too. Or you can make it green, orange, purple... whatever color you choose!"

"So, they're just fancy dualies now?"

"Well, they'll revert back to their upgraded version in any other scenario. So, in Octo Canyon, they still have their upgraded potential."

"Fresh." She spun one of the dualies in her hand. "I'll be sure to make good use of this."

"Well, what are you waiting for? Go ahead and battle!"

"You're right...!" Alexis started running out of Ammo Knights. "See ya, Sheldon!"

"Bye!"

As she entered the lobby, Alexis felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Now that the Great Zapfish had been saved, and DJ Octavio was no longer a threat, she had nothing to worry about. Nothing to worry about at all...

* * *

_?'s PoV_

In the dead of night, a green-haired inkling girl emerged from a subway entrance located in an alleyway near Inkopolis Square. Her visits to the square were rather frequent, seeing as it was the only way she could substantially eat nowadays. However, she made a point to visit when no one was watching. That way, she could reduce whatever conspiracy theories popped up about her.

This particular visit, however, had her spot something odd. The Great Zapfish now curled around Deca Tower instead of Inkopolis Tower. She only had one question—why? She supposed it was because all the youth had moved to the square, but she suspected a more sinister reason. If two years protecting Inkopolis had taught her anything, it's that she should never take anything at surface value.

She walked to Starfish Drinks, a membership card in her pocket. The girl had bought a year-long membership a few weeks before she left for the cape, and after she and Cap'n Cuttlefish were separated, she decided to put it to good use. She entered the establishment, and after a short wait, she approached the cashier.

"Hey," the cashier, a young adult inkling named Hazel, greeted. "Same as normal?"

She nodded. "Same as normal." As the cashier entered in the items, she slid the card towards her, which Hazel promptly scanned and gave back to her. "Have you heard?"

"Heard what?"

"The Great Zapfish and Callie came back today. Well, yesterday, considering it's past midnight now."

"Wait, _what?_" Then, it dawned on her. DJ Octavio had broken out of his snow globe prison once she and Cap'n left, and for some reason, he decided to take Callie as well as the Great Zapfish. _I wonder who saved them. Marie? No, she's too busy._ It was a question for another day, it seemed.

"You didn't hear? It was all over the news six months back."

"No..."

She snickered. "You're a strange girl, you know that? Since November you've been showing up here in nothing but that dirty hero suit and that old cape, you don't have a phone, _and_ now apparently you don't watch TV."

"I used to be fresh," the green-haired inkling pointed out, crossing her arms.

"I could tell. But, do you wanna know something else?"

"What?"

"When the Great Zapfish came back, a girl in a strange hero suit was riding it. Then Callie and Marie showed up, and she ran away."

The girl couldn't help but feel a little jealous. It didn't do that for me. "OK." She started heading towards the order pick-up. "See you later."

"You too!"

If Hazel's words confirmed anything, it was that an Agent 4 was now part of the New Squidbeak Splatoon. A few minutes passed, and another worker called her name, handing her a cream-filled coffee and some bread rolls. She sat down to eat her rolls before departing from Starfish Drinks and returning to the subway entrance. Once again, she returned to the lair of darkness and strange Octarians, drinking her coffee as she traveled through the tunnel.

_Don't worry, Cap'n. I'll find you soon, and then we can figure out what the heck happened while we were gone._

* * *

**A/N: Agent 1? Saved. Agent 2? Happy. Agent 3? Very confused. Agent 4? Also happy. Sorry this a few hours late; I got a little too caught up in gaming. Anyways, this is THE longest chapter in The Rainbow Squids. Over 7,000 words? That's a new record! And there's just so much stuff that happens in this chapter. Most importantly, this is the final Hero Mode chapter, and Agent 4's journey has come to a close. Is there more for her to do? Of course! But not now. This chapter in particular is one I wanted to get to, and we finally have reached it. Thank you for following Alexis on her journey, and here's to more to come! Let's not forget the ending section... I'll admit, that was last minute. I got an idea, and I decided to put it into written form. We'll see her again, I promise you. Thank you all, and Branchwing, out!**


	48. Stressed Out

_Bonnie's PoV_

"No way..." Yuri breathed, marveling at Alexis's new dualies. "How'd ya get these?" The short-haired inkling let the spiky-haired inkling take one of them, and he began spinning it around. Bonnie, slouching on the table, eyed the dualies. Black-and-lime, decorated by blue lights. _Exactly like..._

"That's a Hero weapon, isn't it?" she suspected.

"Yeah," Alexis confirmed. "Sheldon gave me them."

"Really?" Inigo asked. She nodded.

"I don't understand," the dark-skinned boy admitted. "The only people who have actual Hero weapons are Callie, Marie, and... whoever has the Hero Shot." His yellow eyes glanced around the area before meeting the young girl's orange eyes again. "So what makes you special?"

"I wonder..." Octavia pulled a phone out of her pocket and brought up Squidsagram, showing a picture of the mysterious girl that arrived with the Great Zapfish yesterday. "This girl _does_ look a lot like you, Alexis."

Her sister snatched the dualie out of Yuri's hand and crossed her arms, holding both of them. "And she just looks like me, end of story."

"I think you squids are just jealous," Bonnie noted. "She has some fresh dualies, who cares?"

Yuri and Via looked at each other and shrugged. "Actually... you're right, Bon-Bon," the former started. "They are just some fresh dualies." He scratched the back of his head. "Can't believe I got ahead of myself..."

"I don't know, something's fishy about this whole thing," the latter continued, skeptical.

"Don't worry about it," Perry interjected, leaning back in his chair and putting his arms behind his head. "So what if it's a Hero weapon and Sheldon gave it to her personally? Bon-Bon's right; no one cares."

"Hmm..." The wavy-haired girl's orange eyes stared straight ahead, though it was unclear at just what exactly.

"Anyways..." Roy spoke up. "Wanna go do some turf wars?"

"I don't know..." Bonnie frowned. "I failed my math test today..."

"C'mon, you didn't fail it," Yuri tried to encourage. "I bet you did great!"

"Yeah, there's no way you could have failed!" Via exclaimed, now smiling.

"That's not helping," she murmured. "I couldn't understand it... Like, my teacher just introduced it, and now we're taking a test on it. It's not fair."

"Maybe she'll curve it?" Inigo theorized.

"No, she never curves anything," the beige-skinned inkling argued. She turned into a blue squid on the chair, making her seem small, and closed her eyes. "I'm a failure."

She felt someone pick her up. "Not with that attitude!" chirped the spiky-haired boy. She opened her eyes and was met with Yuri's yellow eyes. Plastered on his face was a big, dumb smile. _Oh no..._ "Say, what grade do bees get?" He paused. "A B+!" A few squids giggled at his joke.

Bonnie stared at him, not impressed. "That wasn't funny."

His smile fell. "It wasn't? Then..." He set her back where she was sitting, where she promptly turned into her kid form. He pushed his phone towards her, which displayed a funny image. "Someone found this old human thing and posted it online. I don't know what it's supposed to be, but it's hilarious!"

The girl laughed. "Does it have music? I think that would make it even better."

"Oh, yeah." He turned up the volume of his phone, and immediately, some sort of pop music started playing in the background. At the sound, the Rainbow Squids started crowding around Yuri, trying to get a good look at his phone.

"There ya go, Yuri," Perry praised, trying to hold back his laughter. "Master of making e-everyone laugh."

"See, Bonnie?" Octavia whispered into her ear. "A good way to take your mind off of things, right?"

"Yeah..." the inkling with the double bun agreed.

* * *

"_BONNIE LARGHA!_" her mother called.

The blue-haired girl walked to where her mom was sitting and asked with a shaky voice, "Y-Yes?"

"It says right here-" She showed her the phone screen, displaying the score of her latest test. "-That you got a C- on the test. A C-!"

"I'm s-sorry..."

"Sorry doesn't cut it. Now hand me your phone."

"Yes, Mom." She pulled a blue phone out of her pocket and slid it into the older inkling's hand.

"You're grounded for the next week. That means no turf wars."

Bonnie frowned, and, with her head low, she lumbered to her room and plopped onto her bed, groaning. _I knew this would happen,_ she told herself. _If only my stupid math teacher covered it more, then I could have got it._ She sighed. _I wish I could have explained myself to Mom..._

About an hour later, she heard her father's voice call her name. "Bonnie!" he yelled. "Our old teammates are here!" By 'our', he meant 'me and your mom's'. When they were teenagers, they were both part of a team known as Ink Rush. As the story goes, they were among the top-rated teams in Inkopolis and won numerous tournaments. Eventually, the team's captain, Bonnie's mom, and her right-hand man, Bonnie's dad, fell in love, and after several years of battling, the team disbanded after everyone was caught up in their own lives.

Bonnie always worried that the Rainbow Squids would disband because of a similar reason. And they were so close to breaking apart because of the feud between Roy and Octavia a while back. That fact that they managed to reconcile was a miracle in her eyes, and it only solidified how glad she was to be in the Rainbow Squids.

The blue-haired inkling walked down the stairs of her home to see two new inklings sitting at a table with her parents. All four of them had changed their ink color to a royal blue color. She had met her parent's teammates before, but it had been at least two years since she last saw them. Bonnie's parents looked similar to her—both had beige-colored skin, though her father had a slightly darker shade. Another member of Ink Rush was named James, having warm ivory-colored skin and stern brown eyes. The last member of that team was named Beth, having almond-colored skin and green eyes.

Upon seeing the teenaged inkling, Beth grinned. "Oh, Bonnie!" she exclaimed. "Look at how much you've grown!"

"It's only been two years," she muttered.

"Two years is still a long time for you, is it not?" James remarked.

"And so much has happened in the turf war scene these last two years!" the woman added. "The complete overhaul of specials, so many new weapons, et cetera."

"And it's very different from back in the eighties," the girl's dad mused. "Rollers weren't really a thing back then."

"There were a lot less chargers to choose from," her mom added. "The Squiffer and the Goo Tuber didn't exist, and neither did the scoped weapons. The E-liter was just bad, so the Splat Charger and the Bamboozler were pretty much your only choices. They were a lot less fancy, too."

She didn't really care, but all Bonnie could say in response was, "Fresh."

"I knew you would think of it as fresh," she beamed.

"I brought something else, too." Beth reached into her bag and pulled out a DVD case. "Our first tournament! Now on DVD!" The adult inklings made a sound of awe on sight of it.

"Can't we just watch it on the internet?" James grumbled. "I bet it's there, too."

"I know, but isn't this more homely, Jamie?"

"I guess."

"Alright! Let's go watch!"

As the group walked towards the living room, Bonnie's mom paused to look over her shoulder, towards her daughter, and said, "You're still grounded, but you're welcome to watch it with us if you'd like."

The beige-skinned girl looked to the side before returning her attention to her mother and replied, "Sure. I don't have anything else to do."

"Great!"

Her parents and friends had taken up the entire couch, so Bonnie was forced to sit the rocking chair next to it. Beth put the DVD in the player and bounced back to the couch to watch whatever came on. A few seconds later a selection screen popped up, and Beth, who had the remote, pressed 'play'. Seconds later an announcer began talking, describing the tournament, called Ika Tournament, and its rules. The first match displayed, to no one's surprise, Ink Rush.

"On the Alpha Team, represented by the color blue, we have the up-and-coming Ink Rush! From left to right, we have James 'Jamie' Fiddler with the .96 Gal, Henry Largha with the new Splat Roller, team captain Alice Baleen with the Splat Charger, and Elizabeth 'Beth' Lepturus with the Splattershot!" He announced the other team before handing the microphone off to two cuttlefish, who Bonnie presumed to be the idols on Inkopolis News at the time. Throughout the match, they provided commentary on what was happening.

Bonnie sank into cushions of the rocking chair with a sigh. _This is gonna be a long week..._

* * *

When the blue-haired inkling arrived at school the next morning, she was immediately surrounded by the Rainbow Squids, minus Alexis, making her a little nervous.

"Hey, Bon-Bon, what happened?" Perry asked.

"Yeah, you weren't responding to any of my texts yesterday!" Octavia added.

"I got grounded," she replied.

"_What?!_ Really?!" Via exclaimed, surprised.

The beige-skinned girl nodded. "I got a C- on my math test, and my mom grounded me for it."

"And she took away your phone?" Inigo perplexed. She nodded. "Dang, no wonder."

"But a C- isn't bad," Yuri tried to cheer her up. "At least it wasn't an F!"

"If I got an F, I'd be grounded for a month," Bonnie argued.

"But still, you didn't do that bad," the yellow-haired boy pointed out.

"In my mom's eyes, I did."

Roy let out a frustrated sigh. "Enough 'mom' this, 'mom' that." His red eyes focused on Bonnie's blue ones. "How do you feel about it?"

She blinked before replying, "I..." She never really thought about it before. For almost all of her life, she had been a follower, to the point where she rarely made a choice for herself. She always just followed the words of others, fearing backlash if she refused. "I... don't like it. Being grounded."

"But what about the test?" he pressed. "You happy with a C- or not?"

"Well, it led to me being grounded, so... No?"

"You don't sound sure."

"Alright, I don't know. I thought I would do worse, but I only got a C-. Which is..." She smiled. "Considering what happened... _good._" She looked around at her friends. "Thanks, squids."

"No prob." Perry winked.

"That's what friends are for," Inigo remarked.

"Remember, no matter what happens..." Roy started.

"We'll always be the Rainbow Squids," Via continued.

"Nothing can break us apart!" Yuri exclaimed. "Absolutely nothing at all!" They looked at her, expectant of her to continue the motto.

"...Oh!" Bonnie blushed, a little embarrassed. "And if anything tests our friendship..."

"You can be assured," Inigo stated.

"That we will stay!" Perry proclaimed.

"Go, Rainbow Squids!" they all finished.


	49. A New Solution

_Inigo's PoV_

"Hey," greeted Inigo, smirking. Leaning against the wall of the lobby, he rested one arm on his Carbon Roller, its wheel touching the ground. "Are you a siren?" He snapped his fingers. "Because you just serenaded me."

"Ew, gross," muttered the girl he was talking to. She crossed her arms and walked away.

The indigo-haired boy simply sighed. "Have I lost my touch?" he asked himself. Slouching, he walked towards the exit of the Deca Tower, his roller trailing behind him. He was about to step outside when he heard something beat against the concrete. Grey skies sprawled out in the distance, and water dripped off of metal surfaces. _Oh,_ he realized. _It's raining._

He sat down on a free bench inside the lobby and pulled out his phone. It had been one week since Callie returned, and now, everyone was talking about the Squid Sisters' new song, Fresh Start, that was released today. Inigo hadn't had a chance to listen to it, so he figured now would be a good time. He put in his earbuds and started playing the audio released—it lacked a music video as of now. He leaned back against the metal wall and hummed along to the song.

When the song finished, he immediately added it to his Bubblify list. _That was sooo fresh!_ he said to himself. Inigo proceeded to make a post about it on Squidsagram, and after he finished, he noticed someone new standing in front of him. A pale-skinned inkling quite a few years older than him looked down at him with dark, almost black, eyes. Her long hair was colored red, and she wore a simple white sweater, black pants, and punk yellows. She closed a red, blue, and yellow umbrella and set it to the side.

"Hi, umm... do you need anything?" he asked the lady.

"I think the question is, do _you_ need anything?" she asked back.

"Why do you ask?"

"You don't look happy."

"Well, one, it's raining, and two, I've been having love troubles."

"Love troubles?" A smile danced across her lips. "I can help with that."

He gasped. "You can?!"

"Oh, yeah. I'm a certified love expert." She pulled out her phone and showed Inigo a picture of her next to a certificate. "See?"

The boy with the ponytail examined it. "Tiffany Teuthis," he read. "That's your name?"

"Mhm." She put her phone away. "So, want help?"

"Yeah!" he replied cheerfully. _Maybe if this lady helps me get a girlfriend, I can finally move on from Geneva!_ He leaped up from the bench and pumped a fist. "What first?"

"Well, describe your love troubles first." For a few moments, he hesitated. Should he really be telling a stranger something so personal? "Well?" Tiffany asked again.

He gulped. "O-Over a year ago my girlfriend broke up with me." He gripped the handle of his Carbon Roller a little tighter. "So, I've been flirting with other squids to try to get a another one and move on, but it hasn't been working." _Fable doesn't count_, he added silently. Though the girl clearly liked him, he saw her only as a friend. He couldn't see them getting together any time soon.

"I see. Could you show me an example?"

"An example? Of my flirting?" The red-haired lady nodded. "Well..." He scanned the lobby for a little bit and saw a girl with yellow hair styled into a double bun. Throwing his roller over his shoulder, he approached her and cleared his throat. The girl turned around and sighed at the sight of him. "I could stare at you for hours because you're so beautiful."

"That's creepy," she commented before walking away from him.

Inigo frowned and turned back towards Tiffany. "See?"

"Hmm... The problem is that you use pick-up lines. Sometimes words don't speak to people," she informed him.

"Really?" He couldn't believe his ears. Geneva liked his pick-up lines, but it seemed strange that no one else liked them. "What else could I do?"

"Ever heard the saying, 'actions speak louder than words?'" she started. "You need to _do_ something romantic, not just say it."

"How would I do that?"

"How about when someone falls, you swoop in and grab them. Maybe gaze at them lovingly as well."

Inigo looked towards the exit of Deca Tower, only to find it was still raining. "That might take a while."

"Or will it?" Tiffany sat down on the bench and stretched out her legs, crossing them. An inkling girl started walking towards the exit when she tripped over the lady. Alarmed, the indigo-haired boy dropped his Carbon Roller and ran towards her and wrapped a hand around her waist before she could fall flat on her face. The girl let out a small gasp and turned to face him. Inigo smiled and try to display the most loving gaze possible.

"Uh..." She turned to a squid and slipped out of the fair-skinned boy's arms before reforming in front of him. "Thanks for saving me, but before you ask, I have a boyfriend already."

Inigo groaned and picked up his roller. "And nothing will change that?"

She shook her head. "I love him too much to let him go for a stranger."

"Aw..."

After the girl left, Tiffany cleared her throat, and the boy returned his attention to her. "Maybe the problem is something else?"

"Something else?" he questioned.

"Yeah. Maybe you're not fresh enough—some people do have high standards, after all."

"Wha- I'm S rank, _and_ I'd been level 50 for almost two years before they raised the max last fall. _How_ is that not fresh enough?!"

"Woah, you're superfresh," the red-haired lady complimented. "If it's not because you're not fresh enough, then maybe it's your looks?"

"My... looks?"

"Yeah. You look like a squid someone could beat up for lunch money with that outfit. Girls want someone that can protect them, not a weakling. The vocal dissonance doesn't help."

"I main the Carbon Roller, though. I could totally protect someone!"

"They won't know that at first glance, would they?"

"No."

"Exactly. So, we need to make you seem more attractive."

"How?"

"Girls _also_ like bad boys. For whatever reason, they seem fresher and hotter than the average nice guy, even if the bad boy's super skinny and the nice guy's buff."

"So, you're saying I need to dress like a bad boy?"

"Yeah! What clothes come to mind when I say that?"

"Hmm... Leather jackets, satin jackets, pretty much anything by Annaki, punk boots, masks..."

"Alright! How about you wear some of that gear, and tomorrow, you can tell me what happened!"

"I'll try it." Inigo pulled out his phone and showed the lady a screen with his phone number on it. "This is so we can stay in touch," he explained, winking.

"Great." Tiffany put his phone number into her phone and stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"You, too!"

* * *

The next day at school, Inigo walked in wearing a Forge mask, a rockin' leather jacket, and punk whites. He even put on some leggings instead of his usual shorts this time. He stood in the middle of the hallway and crossed his arms, his indigo eyes scanning the area. He got a few odd looks as people passed by him, but not much else. Soon, Roy approached him, bewildered.

"Inigo, what are you wearing?" he asked.

"Some 'bad boy' clothes," he replied. "It was recommended by a certified love expert."

"A certified love expert? Those exist?" the red-haired boy perplexed.

"Yeah." He pulled up the picture of Tiffany posing next to her certificate and showed it to his friend. "See?"

"Interesting..." He straightened and looked into Inigo's eyes with his red ones. "So, what plan did you come up with?"

"Well, my love expert said if I looked like a bad boy, people would find me more attractive, so I'm gonna try it and see what happens," the boy with the ponytail replied.

"Well, good luck," Roy told him. "Tell me if it works."

"Don't worry, I will."

Inigo strolled up to a group of inkling girls and put one hand on the wall and the other on his hip. "Hey, ladies."

The girls turned around to face him. "Inigo?" one of them muttered. Even more of them giggled at his outfit.

Turning his attention to the girl that said his name, he purred, "You are the light of my life, Molly. We could be together forever."

"Actually, you're my sleep paralysis demon. Goodbye." Molly walked away, and the rest of the girls followed her. Inigo felt a little disheartened by the failed attempt, but it was only his first try—he still had the whole day to go!

The indigo-haired inkling next approached a girl sitting on the ground, drawing something in a notebook. "Hey," he greeted, placing a hand on the wall again. The girl looked up at him. "I bet that drawing is a masterpiece, but do you know what else is a masterpiece? You." He finished his pick-up line with a wink. The inkling girl's only response was to scream and run off. "Oh..." he mumbled, shaking his head. _No matter. I'll just try again!_ Inigo scanned the hallway again and spotted a girl wearing a black inky rider. _Maybe a _bad girl_ would like a _bad boy.

He strolled up to her, moonwalking in front of her to make sure he got her attention. "Hey there," he greeted her.

The girl's pink eyes scanned him, and she asked, "Don't you usually wear a sailor outfit?"

"Yes, but that's not important—I'm a new me, with a new outfit to go with it. So, what do you say? Shall we go bike-riding into the sunset together?"

The girl stifled a laugh. "I don't ride bikes, and I'm certainly not interested in you." Inigo stopped and slouched over with a groan. She gave him a pat on the head before passing him.

_This isn't going too well..._

* * *

After school, Inigo found Tiffany standing outside of the Deca Tower. Immediately on seeing her, he ran up to her, calling her name.

"Tiffany, Tiffany!" he called. "This didn't work!"

"It didn't?" the red-haired lady blurted.

He nodded. "It went horribly, in fact!"

"Hmm... If even that didn't work, then I have one final idea."

"Please tell me, I'm desperate at this point!"

Tiffany began walking into one of the alleyways. "Follow me." Nodding, the boy with the ponytail followed the woman into the dark alley. They stopped in front of a dumpster that was presumably behind some sort of office building. She turned around, her dark eyes looking into his indigo ones, and pulled out a fancy-looking Carbon Roller. "This is yours."

Inigo took the roller and set its wheel to the ground. "What about it?"

"It has the speed of a Carbon Roller, but the power of a Splat Roller. With a fresh weapon like this, you're sure to impress any lady that comes your way," she explained. "But there's more." Leaning towards his ear, she began whispering her plan to the fair-skinned boy. "Think about it, boy. You could have everything. You'll no longer be treated like a joke. Ladies will kill to have you. Even better, you can have all the ladies you want. Nothing will get in your way. So, what do you say?"

"I..." Even to Inigo, her plan seemed a little extreme. If it failed, the consequences could be enormous. But, if anything, it's _never_ to be indecisive. _Go with the first choice_, he reminded himself. And, to be honest, he quite liked this plan. Besides, the rewards were just too hard to resist.

"I'll do it."

* * *

**A/N: You guessed it - we're heading into another arc. This one will span quite a few chapters. Now, I don't trust Tiffany... do you? Branchwing, out!**


	50. Panic of the Horseshoe Crab

_Perry's PoV_

"So, Lori, Deadeye," Perry started, "ya told me yer gonna show me how to use an E-liter today?"

Deadeye nodded. "That's right," she confirmed. "Lori'll teach you how to use the vanilla version, while I'll teach you how to use its scoped version."

"It's good to get the basics down, first," Lori added.

"So, what are we waitin' for?" the purple-haired boy teased. "Let's go to the shooting range!"

The two girls nodded, and the group walked into Ammo Knights, hoping to ask Sheldon permission to both borrow an E-liter 4K and to use the shooting range. Instead, they were met with three female inklings—Alexis, alongside two inklings some years older than her.

"I told you, I _don't_ have it!" one of the older inklings, a lady with long black hair and hot pink tips, persisted.

"If anyone stole it, it would be Four," the other older inkling, one with short grey hair and lime green tips, remarked, bringing a hand to her face.

"Why would _I_ have it?" Alexis questioned. "I only use it in-"

Perry interrupted their conversation with an 'ahem,' and the group turned around to face him, Lori, and Deadeye. Sheldon walked in front of them.

"Ah! Hope you didn't hear anything important!" the black-haired inkling fretted. Her eyes were covered by black shades.

"Uh... What's going on?" Deadeye asked, raising an eyebrow.

"My new-and-improved Hero Roller has gone missing," Sheldon explained. "It's very valuable, and I can't let that baby fall into the wrong hands!"

"We're the ones testing it, so he came to us first," the grey-haired inkling elaborated. She was wearing a lime green baseball cap that obscured her eyes, alongside a white face mask.

"Wait, Alexis," Perry's purple eyes glanced over at the bronze-skinned girl. "I didn't know you test weapons!"

"Yeah, I do," she confirmed. "It's noth-"

"Is that how you got the Hero Dualies?" he quickly followed up.

She nodded. "Please don't tell anyone about this..." she whined.

"But why would you keep such a fresh thing from everyone?"

"Because it's supposed to be secret!"

"And we're not lookin' for new members right now," the grey-haired inkling added in jest. "Sorry."

"Aight, aight! I won't tell!" he conceded. "Promise!"

"Tentacle promise?" Alexis turned into a squid and dropped to the floor, where she lifted herself up and held out an orange tentacle.

Perry sighed and turned into a squid himself, wrapping a purple tentacle around hers. "Tentacle promise." The two kids reformed, and instead of tentacles, their pinkies were wrapped around each other.

When they let go, Sheldon looked up at Perry, Lori, and Deadeye and asked, "So, how can I help you on this fine day?"

"We need two things," Lori started. "One: An E-liter 4K. Two: To use the shooting range."

"An E-liter 4K? Are you looking to buy one?" he asked.

"Probably not." Lori patted Perry on the head, leading him to blush a little. "Perry here wants to learn how to use one, and we're gonna teach him."

"Ah, I see." The horseshoe crab walked over to an empty version of the aforementioned charger and handed it to the pale-skinned boy. Upon touch, the tank of the E-liter became filled with purple ink. "Well, of course you can use my shooting range. Now, have fun!"

"Don't worry." Deadeye smirked. "We will."

The three walked out the back of Ammo Knights, to the shooting range. Some squid bumpers were set up, ready to be shot at. Perry and Lori changed their ink color to match Deadeye's—pink—and revealed their weapons.

"Alright, first lesson," Lori announced. "How to hold an E-liter."

"How...?" Perry blinked. "I've used chargers before; it can't be _that_ different."

"How well did you do?" she asked, placing a hand on her chin.

"Not good," he replied.

"Then you either have a bad aim, or, more likely, you're not holding it correctly." The boy with spiky bangs held up the E-liter 4K, though he didn't dare press down on the trigger just yet. He pointed towards the nearest squid bumper to the entrance. "Lower." He followed her instructions.

"Lori," he started, clenching his teeth, "I think I'll pull a muscle if I keep holdin' this."

"Like I said, you're not holding it correctly. Relax your shoulders."

"Relax... my shoulders?" The girl with the ends of her hair cut off walked over to him and pushed down on his shoulders. Perry didn't bother to resist, and his shoulders fell.

"There. Without the tension, it should be much easier."

The pale-skinned boy stood there for a few seconds and realized the previous shoulder pain was indeed, gone. "Hey, you're right!" He looked over at Lori and smiled. "Thanks!"

"No problem." She returned his words with a smile. "Now, let's see..." She examined the E-liter he held once more, moving his hands to fix his grip when needed. "There. Now, drop it."

His purple eyes blinked. "Drop it?"

"Just drop it," she groaned. Perry released his grip, and the E-liter 4K dropped to the ground with a thud. "Now, pick it back up." He picked it back up, remembering to relax his shoulders. Her grey eyes squinted at him. "Hmm... Higher." He raised it. "That's too high. Lower it." He lowered it. "Alright, that's good. As for your hands, move the non-firing hand up a little."

"The 'non-firing hand'?"

"You know." Lori spun her hand around, moving her fingers. "The hand that's not on the trigger."

"Oh! Got it." He moved his hand up the charger, only for Lori to tell him to move it a little further back. Once it was finally in the perfect position, she gave a thumbs-up before telling him to drop the E-liter again.

"Don't ya think you're being a little too strict?" Deadeye asked her companion. "He's just starting to learn this weapon, after all."

"Deedee, trust me." She winked. "I've got this covered."

The wavy-haired girl blushed. "Y-Yeah, but you can't expect him to have the perfect position when holding it."

The girl with the ends of her hair cut off sighed, then smiled. "You know? You're right." Her grey eyes returned to face Perry. "Pick it back up," she demanded, and he did as instructed. Without checking his positioning, she continued, "Now, aim at that dummy over there." She pointed at the squid bumper in the back of the shooting range. "Press down on the trigger... and when that light glows and you hear a beep..." She tapped the back of the charger's tank. "Fire!"

Perry took a few steps towards the dummy and watched as the beam emitting from the E-liter 4K got longer and longer. When he heard a beep, he let go of the trigger, and a huge stream of pink ink flew out of the charger, piercing the squid bumper and making it pop.

"Good, but that's expected—still targets are easy," Lori proceeded. "Let's try it with a moving target." They walked over to the other side of the shooting range, which featured squid bumpers moving back-and-forth, on a set track. "Pop at least one of them."

The boy with spiky bangs charged up a shot, aiming it at one of the dummies, and fired, but he missed. Frowning, he tried again. Once more, he missed. He fired, then missed, fired, then missed... He had to refill his ink tank at least twice before he finally managed to pop one.

"That took a while," Lori commented.

"I don't understand why I keep missin'," he admitted. "My aim is usually fresh, but now, for whatever reason, it sucks."

"You main the Sloshing Machine, right?" Deadeye inquired.

"Yeah, what about it?" he replied with a question.

"Well, a charger isn't a slosher," she pointed out. "It needs more precision. You absolutely need a direct hit to splat someone, unlike the Sloshing Machine, where you can just throw ink all day and get a splat without trying."

"Ah..." The pale-skinned inkling looked back at the squid bumpers. "Then I'll just have to keep practicing." He charged up the E-liter 4K again, and somehow, he managed to hit one of them. "Ha! See? I can get one first try!"

"You just got lucky," groaned Lori. "Do it a few more times."

"Now, before that, I have something to tell you." His ultimate plan for asking Lori and Deadeye to help him with his E-liter 4K skills was to ask the former out on a date. He had been building up a plan for quite some time, now, and finally, he was going to execute it.

"Oh?" the girl asked. "What is it?" Perry pulled out his phone and began playing some trap music. Setting it against the wall, he then grabbed a traffic cone to use as a microphone. Lori raised an eyebrow and looked over at Deadeye. The wavy-haired inkling whispered something to her, and she proceeded to grab her hand. "This won't end well," the grey-eyed girl murmured. There was a pause in the music, and then Perry began rapping.

"Hey, hey! Perry in da house! Now, let's go! / Lori! The name that rhymes with glory! / Glamorous, fantabulous, glorious! / These words are the ones I use to describe Lori! / It's time to be victorious! / But wait, let me stop ya right there. / Why would I end it there? / The song's just beginning, I swear. / Lori, you're just so rare. / There's no other girl like ya. / Who else has superb skills? / Not me, that's for sure, ha! / But who else gives me the chills?"

The music got more intense as he got to the bridge. "There's no one like you. / Really no one like you. / So, if only you knew. / How much I love you!" The volume peaked at its chorus. "O-oh, Lori! / Tell a, story! / Make me laugh and cry! / 'til you say goodbye! / I'm the one, I'm the one. / For ya, for ya! / Let's go have lots of fun. / Lori, la la!" As an instrumental played, Perry started to dance, mimicking the moves he had seen playing Squid Beatz 2.

As the beat calmed down, he stopped dancing and proceeded to rap the next verse. "Please, will ya go out with me? / I would really really like that. / As beautiful as the sea. / We can go out and have a chat. / We can go eat at a restaurant. / Or maybe a café! / And then we can hang at a resort! / Or Inkopolis Bay! / Which do ya like? / It doesn't matter to me. / Will feelings spike? / We'll be as busy as bees!"

The purple-eyed boy proceeded to sing the bridge again, then the chorus. After the chorus ended again, there was a much longer instrumental this time, in which he proceeded to show several more dance moves. The beat dropped, and he proceeded to sing the chorus again, all while dancing.

"Oh yeah!" he finished the song off with. After the music ended, Perry struck a pose and glanced over at Lori. "So, what do ya think?"

She simply blinked. "It's a nice song, but there's one problem."

"What?"

"I'm already dating someone." Lori and Deadeye glanced at each other and smiled. The former gave the latter a kiss on the cheek, causing her to blush.

It was then Perry realized just who Lori was dating. "Oh..." He frowned, lowering his shoulders. "You're dating Deadeye."

"Yeah, I thought it was obvious."

"You won't change your mind?"

"Nah, I'm pretty happy right now. Besides, if I did, I would be dating another girl."

"Oh..."

The wavy-haired girl recomposed herself and asked, "So... do you still want E-liter lessons?"

He nodded. "I'm not abandoning this."

"Alright," Lori started, "remember what I said earlier?" The inkling with spiky bangs picked up the charger again. "Keep taking down the dummies with your E-liter, until I give the OK." He proceeded to follow her instructions in silence, the rejection still heavy on his mind. "OK, that's good. I think you got the basics down."

His purple eyes met her grey ones. "Are we learning more advanced techniques now?"

"Not for today."

Deadeye looked over at her partner and inquired, "Do I get to teach now?" She nodded. The red-eyed girl stepped up, pulling out a Custom E-liter 4K Scope. She placed the weapon in Perry's hands and informed, "I'll let you borrow mine for today."

"Wow." He studied the charger. A heart-shaped charm hung off one of the beams connected to the tank. "Thanks."

"No problem." She cleared her throat and began her explanation. "Scoped chargers aren't much different from normal chargers. There's three main differences—it has a scope, obviously, it can't store charges, and it has a slightly better range than a normal charger."

"I never knew about the range thing," Perry remarked.

"It's a slightly obscure fact," Deadeye noted. "Now, let's get you used to that scope. Still or moving squid bumpers?"

"Moving!" He was quite confident he could hit even more moving squid bumpers.

"Alright. Now, aim your E-liter." He held up the charger, with the instructor changing his positioning if needed. "Now, press down on the trigger, and look into the scope." Closing one eye, a purple eye peered into the scope, and he watched as his field of view became more and more limited. "Don't lift your head; that messes up your aim," she warned.

"How will I know where to shoot, then?" he asked.

"You have to be aware of your surroundings. Using scoped chargers takes a while to get used to. For now, just judge where to shoot based on what you see in the scope." Once the beam emitted from the charger crossed one of the dummies, he fired, but he ended up missing. He lifted his head and made a groan. "Try again," Deadeye encouraged. He charged up the Custom E-liter 4K Scope again, and after a few more tries, he finally managed to hit one of them.

"Booyah!" he cheered.

"Yes! Do it again!" He proceeded to hit another squid bumper. "And again." Two more tries later, he hit yet another squid bumper. "And again." The instruction repeated until the wavy-haired inkling said, "Now, stop."

Perry looked over at the two girls. "Is that all for today?"

"That's all for today," Lori confirmed.

"If you want to learn more, we can do this again another time," Deadeye added.

"I think I'll prove my skills on the battlefield," he declared, smirking.

"Eager..." the girl with the ends of her tentacles cut off muttered.

Changing his ink color back to normal, the purple-haired boy marched back inside and called Sheldon's name. "I want to buy an E-liter!"

Sheldon came tumbling out of his office, holding a stack of papers. "Ah, so now you want to buy one!" he exclaimed. "Well, which one? There's the standard E-liter 4K, whose pressurized polymer construction gives it a remarkably long range. Though it's more compact than the original, it still has plenty of reach! You can use the Ink Mines to cover your tracks and then use the Ink Storm special to expose anyone hiding from you!" Perry started to tune out the horseshoe crab's explanation, becoming a little bored from it.

"...Hello?" He waved a small hand in front of Perry's face. "Are you still there?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah. I'll buy the E-liter 4K, plus the scope."

"Both of them? Well, that's marvelous!" Sheldon cheered. "That comes up to a grand total of 28,600G!"

From his wallet, Perry pulled out the silver debit card his dad had given him all those months ago. "Fresh."

They walked over to the POS system. "You know what to do, I hope," the horseshoe crab stated. The purple-haired inkling swiped his card, entered the PIN, and proceeded to sign off on the purchase. Sheldon ran to the cash register and gave Perry his receipt. "Enjoy your splatastic new weapon!"

"Ya bet I will!" Perry started walking towards Lori and Deadeye, who were waiting for him near the entrance.

"Wait!" the vender suddenly shouted. He hurried up to the three, papers in hand. "If you see this weapon, could you tell me?" He handed each of the inklings a paper that depicted a fancy roller. _The Hero Roller?_ Perry guessed. "Please, it's really important!"

"The weapon you were talkin' 'bout earlier?" the pale-skinned boy asked. He nodded.

"The Hero Roller..." the grey-eyed girl pondered.

"You can count on us, Sheldon," the red-eyed girl promised.

"Great!" He waved to the group as they exited the shop. "Come back to Ammo Knights some time!"

"Don't worry, we will," finished Lori.

As they headed to the Deca Tower, Perry stared down at the paper, bewildered. The situation was just so odd. A new Hero Roller? Were there other new Hero weapons, just like it? There were so many questions!

_Well, they're not important. Only bringin' home that roller is!_


	51. If Only

_Roy's PoV_

Everywhere Roy walked, it seems he could not escape people talking about the freshest squid on the block today—the Vigilante. Unfortunately, this extended to the Rainbow Squids themselves, beginning at lunch that day.

"Hey, squids," started Octavia, "have you heard about the Vigilante?"

"Of course," Roy replied. "You'd have to be living under a rock not hear about him."

"I'm jealous of him," remarked Perry. "All the ladies are falling for him. I'm worried he'll catch Pearl's eye, and she'll go off with him."

"I'm just interested in that roller of his," Yuri commented. "It's so fresh! Where'd he get it?"

"I dunno." The red-haired inkling shrugged and leaned back in the cafeteria chair. "Somewhere."

"I have a theory of where he got it from," Perry spoke up.

"Which is...?" the spiky-haired inkling asked.

"A few days ago, when I went to the shooting range with Lori and Deadeye, Sheldon was panicking over losing a new weapon. A new version of the Hero Roller, apparently," he explained. He pulled a piece of paper out of his backpack, which depicted a strange Carbon Roller with lime-green-and-black accents, and showed it to the group. It read, 'MISSING! If found, please return to Ammo Knights!'.

"Well..." Via pulled up the most well-known picture of the Vigilante thus far on her phone and showed it to the group in return. The mysterious squid donned a hero costume, tinted sunglasses, and a roller matching the one on the flier. He appeared to be about the Rainbow Squids' age, with fair skin and red hair tied up in a ponytail. "Whatcha think?"

"That has to be it," Bonnie concluded.

"So you think he stole it?" Yuri asked the pale-skinned inkling.

Perry nodded. "Yep. That has to be the only explanation behind his fresh roller."

"What do ya think, Inigo?" the tan-skinned boy then asked the boy with the ponytail. He had remained silent the entire time they were in the cafeteria.

"Umm... hey, squids! Have you heard about the new thing the school's doin'?" Inigo instead inquired.

"What?" the wavy-haired girl asked, curious.

"Ahead of White Day, they're doing this little secret admirer thing. Where you write an anonymous message, give it to the student council people, and then on White Day, they'll give your message to whoever you wrote it to," he explained.

"So... basically the same thing they did for Valentine's Day," she concluded.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"I swear some people are gonna try to write to the Vigilante," Bonnie mused. "I don't think he even goes to school."

"Yeah, and it isn't like anyone knows who he is," Octavia added.

"I still wonder who the Vigilante could be..." the beige-skinned girl murmured. "He could be anyone."

"Yeah," Yuri agreed.

"So, who are you squids writing to?" Inigo asked, changing the subject once more.

"I don't know," Perry admitted. "Ever since Lori rejected me, I've been a little down in the dumps."

"Still? It's been a week!" the bronze-skinned inkling exclaimed.

"I mean, he _did_ write a song for her," the blue-haired inkling pointed out.

"Yeah, that's dedication right there," the dark-skinned inkling added.

"Anyways, I'll just write to my crush," Via decided. "That's easy."

"Easy for you to say..." Bonnie muttered. "Maybe I'll just write to a friend. Or friends."

"And I'll write to mine, too," Yuri agreed. "Perfect!"

_My crush..._ The thought made Roy blush. He lowered his head to hide behind his lunch box. _So embarrassing!_

"You OK there, Roy?" Perry asked.

"Don't ask," he requested. "Please."

Later that day, when the Rainbow Squids had met up in Inkopolis Square, they still talked about the Vigilante. Strangely enough, Inigo was not there. The only clue any of them had on his whereabouts was a text saying that he was busy. Some time passed, and Inigo still did not arrive. However, Octa Prisma did walk up to them, complete with a new member.

"I thought you inklings would be liking to know," Giovanni started, "that we have a new member."

"Hello," greeted a familiar blue-haired boy. "My name is Brayden."

"He used to be spying on the Octarians for the us," elaborated Iris. "Now that DJ Octavio is the captured again, he has no need to spy."

"Right," Brayden confirmed. "It did not take long before I convinced Giovanni to let me join the group."

"I am hoping we find a member of six soon!" Yvonne bubbled. "We no do want Brayden alone in battle!"

"The criteria is being purple and having a slosher, or is being red and having a charger," Oscar added.

"You could call us if you know someone with that criteria," Gio offered.

"We don't have your numbers," Bonnie pointed out.

"Will you-" the octoling with the afro began.

"You can call us from where you sit," the green-haired boy interrupted. "We sit over there." He pointed to a table with a purple squid-shaped pillow in the middle of it.

Yvonne ran over to the table and grabbed the pillow. "This is me!" she exclaimed. "Uh, mine!" she corrected herself. "No purple, or a squid!" she assured them, shaking her head.

"She won it from a claw machine at the arcade," Brayden commented. "After she won it, she asked me why I was not in Octa Prisma. That led to me asking if I could join Octa Prisma."

"I see," Roy muttered. His red eyes drifted over to Oscar. He was fidgeting with his fingers, a nervous smile framing his face._ Too bad we didn't get their numbers._ Truth be told, he would have liked that. If only the rivalry between the Rainbow Squids and Octa Prisma didn't get in the way...

"Oh, did you guys hear about the Vigilante?" Via then asked.

"Of course." Giovanni crossed his arms and smirked. "How can I not hear about the Vigilante?"

"There is something off about the Vigilante," the blue-haired octoling admitted.

"Yes, I do not be trust him," Yvonne agreed.

"Me neither," Alexis spoke up. "That roller doesn't belong to him. Who knows what other tricks he has up his sleeve?"

"What?" the yellow-haired girl asked. "'Tricks he has up his sleeve?'"

"It's an expression," explained the wavy-haired inkling. "Basically, he might try something other than woo girls."

"Ah, I be getting the it." She grinned. "Thank you!"

"No problem." She winked.

"Anyways, the Vigilante," Gio directed. "I will be looking into him."

"Wait, you're gonna help us?!" Perry exclaimed, eyes widening. "Knowin' you, I thought you wouldn't care about him!"

"I have seen the flier of Sheldon," he informed. "I know the Hero Roller is the missing." A giddy smile came across his face as he adjusted his short beanie a little bit. "If I find the roller, perhaps the Squid Sisters will be noticing me!"

"What... do the Squid Sisters have to do with anything?" Via questioned.

"Oh, right." He slouched. "I forget that you do not know about the Calamari Inkantation..."

"Y'know, this is the one time your stalking is kinda useful," started Alexis once more, leaning back in her chair. "So, yeah. Find out more about this Vigilante guy."

He blinked. "You implying my 'stalking' is never useful." He sighed. "We should be going." He turned around and started walking away from them. "Goodbye." The other Rainbow Squids said goodbye back, leaving the group alone once more.

As the heat receded from his cheeks, Roy stood up and put his hands on the table. "I'm taking a walk," he announced. _It's not like I can talk to Inigo, anyways._

"...Alright," said Bonnie.

"Have fun!" cheered Yuri.

The red-haired boy smiled and started walking towards the direction of Grizzco's. Though, he wasn't going to do a Salmon Run—there was no way he was doing that again. Instead, he wanted to walk elsewhere. Really, he just wanted to clear his head of whatever thoughts were invading his mind. He put his hands in the pockets of his jacket and started walking.

The cool air blew at him, and he smiled as he felt the breeze. After everything that had happened today, it was like a hug, someone coming to smother him in relief. And then he smiled. _So relaxing..._ But then he started to think about his crush again, who could hug him so lovingly. He grumbled and kicked a pebble off the sidewalk.

Soon, he found himself at Blackbelly Skatepark. When it wasn't being used for turf wars, it was actually quite active. He entered the premises and sat down on a bench near a wall. His red eyes watched some preteens mess around, trying to skateboard to the best of his ability. A memory from when he was twelve began to resurface.

_A red inkling boy sat on the bench, holding up his violin. The music stand was set up, but regardless, he had spent days practicing this song, in hopes his crush, who happened to be skateboarding, would notice. Red eyes glanced over at the other inkling briefly, and then he began to play the serenade._

_Admittedly, it wasn't his best work, but he was just so eager. The notes flew off the strings, creating a lovely, if out-of-tune, melody. A few skaters gave him a few looks, but they mostly ignored him. Roy smiled. Everything was going, just as he hoped. The only thing that hadn't happened yet was his crush noticing him._

_The one person he hoped wouldn't notice it noticed it, however. School bully Hunter strolled up to him, alongside his friends. The green inkling crossed his arms, a malicious grin on his face._

_"Hey, fishface," he spat. "Who's that song for?"_

_At the sight of him, the violin bow slid out of his hand, bringing the song to a halt with a screeching note. "No one!" he snapped, hugging the instrument. His cheeks burned with embarrassment._

_"C'mon," he jeered. "That's not true."_

_"It's for no one!" Roy persisted._

_Hunter snatched the sheet music out of the stand and read it. "'Lovefish'? Seriously?" He let out a bellowing laugh. "Ha! Pathetic! Trying to win over someone with music? When will you ever learn?"_

_"Hey!" he shouted, unable to find any other words to defend himself._

_"Stupid fishface." The green inkling picked up the bow and pressed it against his leg, the pressure eventually breaking it in two. Roy's jaw dropped as the two pieces of wood fell to the floor._

_"No!" the red inkling cried. He threw his violin aside and tackled him. The two boys started rolling down the hill, fighting. Roy punched him, and with his other hand, he grabbed the other boy's ponytail and pulled on it._

_"Ow! Freak!" he hissed. He clenched one of Roy's loose tentacles and pulled on it, causing a surge of pain to go through it. While he was distracted, the two flipped positions, allowing Hunter to kick him in the side. The red boy fell to the floor, and the green boy put a foot on his belly. Roy grabbed his shin and pried the leg off of him, allowing another attempt to attack Hunter, only for him to crash into the wall. He grabbed Roy's arm and pulled it towards him. "And weak, too," he whispered._

"I'M NOT WEAK!"_ the red inkling roared, punching Hunter in the jaw with his free hand. Some blood trickled out of the green inkling's mouth, but he simply glanced over at his friends, and the other boys promptly began smashing the violin into the ground. _"NO! STOP IT, NO!"_ Roy started to cry. _"NO, NO, NO!"_ He screamed until his voice began to become hoarse. Hunter let go of his arm, and he dropped to the floor._

_"'Not weak,' you say?" Hunter snarled. He looked over at his friends. "C'mon, boys. Let's get out of here."_

_The other inklings tossed the remains over at Roy. At the sight of the destroyed violin, Roy began to cry some more._

_"No, no..."_

Since that incident, Roy had been careful not to show any romantic feelings. Any time it tried to wriggle its way out of his body, he always suppressed it. It had been haunting him for years, and yet here he was, contemplating sending an anonymous letter to his crush. _I should just forget it. It's not like..._

His thoughts trailed off when he saw someone familiar. An inkling about a year older than him, with olive skin and green hair tied up into a ponytail. He chatted with some friends, whipping a phone out of his hoodie. A long-buried hatred fired up in him again. _Hunter..._ He found himself approaching him, shoulders tense. _I'm not backing down this time._

"Hey!" he yelled. Hunter and his friends looked over at him, confused. "Remember me?!"

"Uh... no?" the green-haired inkling responded. He squinted at him for a few moments, and then he followed up with, "OK, you look a little familiar, but I still don't know you."

His eyebrows furrowed. "Is this a joke?! You seriously don't remember?!"

"Remember _what_?"

"The violin!"

"Ohh, Roy!" Hunter rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, it's just that you look really different now."

_He's not calling me 'fishface'._ "What do you have to say for yourself?" he snarled.

He blinked. "You're still mad?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

He snickered. "Look, that was a _long_ time ago. I've changed since then."

"I don't believe it."

"Then I'll prove it. I'm sorry."

"You... wait, what?"

Hunter stepped past his friends and approached Roy. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for calling you names, beating you up, and breaking your violin." His expression was impossible to read, but something in those green eyes suggested that he was truly remorseful.

The red-haired boy's anger started to fade, but he still did not believe him. "Sure you are," he simply muttered.

"I am. I can give you help, if you really want it."

"No."

"You-"

"I said no." He turned his back on him and started to walk towards the exit of Blackbelly Skatepark. "That's final." _I can't stand to look at him any longer._

"Whatever. You know where to find me if you come running back, though."

* * *

Days past, and soon, it was the middle of March, on the day known as White Day. Roy came to school holding several boxes of chocolates, meant for all the girls that gave him chocolate back on Valentine's Day, but to him, it was a simple act of courtesy. It was tradition that boys gave chocolate back to the girls who had given them chocolate previously, so he felt it was necessary to uphold that tradition.

On the other hand, after some encouragement from his friends, he did end up writing a letter to his crush. Since it was an anonymous letter, no one would know who wrote what, but he still hoped his crush liked it, anyways. The chances were slim, but he had to hope for the best.

After he delivered all the chocolates, Roy arrived at his first class of the day, right before the bell rang for the first time. People poured into the classroom, and quickly did the lesson began. While the teacher was teaching, someone knocked on the door. Iris got up from her seat and opened it, only to find Alexis and another inkling girl, holding a basket.

"Hello," greeted Roy's math teacher.

"We've come with a delivery," the girl accompanying Alexis announced, striking a pose.

"The White Day letters," the short-haired inkling followed up. "We'll say your names, and when your name is called, raise your hand, and we'll give the letter to you."

The list appeared to be alphabetical, as Roy was the second person to be called. Before he could raise his hand, Alexis was already making her way over to the tan-skinned boy, holding a few letters. She placed them on his desk, and as they gave out the rest of letters, he began reading them.

'Happy White Day!' read one letter. It was signed by Bonnie. _Guess she went through with her idea after all_, he thought with a chuckle. Most of the other letters were not very interesting, but the last letter in his pile caught his eye.

'Dear Roy,' it started. 'You are like a fire. You burn brightly, sparking life into everyone. But you can also be destructive, stopping at nothing to achieve your goal. Yet, by your heat I become undone. I hope you can be mine someday, the boy I admire.' The poem was unsigned, but it was clear that whoever wrote it put a lot of time into it.

A strange warm tingled inside of Roy. _Who wrote this?_ Soon, though, a thought crawled into his head. It was a silly thought, but one not too far out there.

_Could it be him?_

* * *

**A/N: Don't be homophobic, kids. You could ruin someone's life. Anyways, sorry for beating up another Rainbow Squid. Inigo, Alexis, Yuri (kind of), Bonnie, and now Roy. Geneva's going to get beat up later on, too, which doesn't help. But... I like drama. So, how do you feel about the Vigilante. I don't think it's that hard to guess his identity. Same goes for just where Geneva went for vacation, actually - there's plenty of hints on what she's doing throughout the story. Stay tuned for more, and Branchwing, out!**


	52. Beholding the Crown

_Octavia's PoV_

"Woo!" Octavia cheered. "Only one more match before I can scrub this gear!"

"How you scrub the gear?" Yvonne asked her. By chance, the octoling ended up in her lobby, and the two ended up fighting against each other in the last match. Via ended up winning, but Yvonne did not seem fazed from the defeat.

"Oh, I don't scrub the gear myself," she replied. "I got to Murch for that."

"Murch?" Her head tilted in confusion.

"Yeah, that sea urchin that sits outside the tower," she elaborated. "For being a kid, he's surprisingly good at what he does."

"Ooh, sound fresh!" Her yellow eyes sparkled with a newfound determination. "Thank you, Via! I be check out now!" She started to walk out of the elevator when she bumped into a fair-skinned inkling wielding a Carbon Roller entering the room. "Sorry!" she apologized.

"Don't be," he said, adjusting his red-tinted shades. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

"But Vigilante..." muttered a feminine voice behind him. A girl with short, indigo hair, fair skin, and red eyes popped out from behind him. "It's not your fault she didn't see you."

"Hey!" Yvonne complained, lowering her Hydra Splatling. Suddenly, she then cried out, "Wait, the _Vigilante_?!"

"Yeah, that's me," confirmed the inkling boy. "I'm just not wearing my normal stuff; that's all." Indeed, he was not wearing the hero costume shown in pictures. Instead, he wore, along with his tinted shades, a black anchor tee and the N-Pacer Ag.

"He's my boyfriend," proclaimed the other girl, wrapping her arms around one of his. "So he's not interested!"

"I was no interest in the Vigilante," the dark-skinned octoling pointed out. "I no trust him, actually."

"Why not? I'm trustworthy," he argued.

"That's what you say," the wavy-haired inkling mumbled. Louder, she asked, "Where's that roller you carry, then? All I see is a Carbon Roller."

"It's not approved for turf wars," he explained, "so I'm just using a Carbon Roller instead."

"I see..."

"I thinked you are the Vigilante!" Yvonne said in a bubbly tone, though her word choice suggested she felt otherwise. "You suppose to be the superfresh!"

"Even I am bound by the law of turf wars," he lamented. "As much as I would love to bring my superfresh roller here, I can't here."

Suddenly, a female voice chirped behind them, "Wait, is that the Vigilante?"

Octavia turned around to look at the source of the new voice—a girl about a year younger than her, with long yellow hair and medium-toned skin. "Yeah, you didn't see him walk in?" It took a few moments for her to remember that she had been on her team in the last match.

"But he looks so different from the pictures," the girl noted. "He's usually wearing a hero costume, and now, he's not. He was so much hotter, too..."

The boy's girlfriend must had heard her comment, as she immediately stepped up to her and put a finger on her nose. "Look, he's _my_ boyfriend, and he's perfect just the way he is!"

"_Shh..._" The Vigilante wrapped an arm around her and pulled her back towards him, into a hug. "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." He planted a kiss on her head.

"How long have you two been dating?" asked another boy, one with purple hair styled into a sidecut and dark skin.

"Since last night," replied the girlfriend, putting a fair hand on her cheek. "I walked up to him, we stared at each other for a few moments, and then he asked if we could date. And I said yes, of course!"

As they conversed, the elevator door shut behind the couple, causing Yvonne to groan and grumble something in Octarian. The room began to descend further and further, until eventually, a grate opened up beneath them.

"Good luck," wished the Vigilante. He lowered his shades slightly, giving a wink before pushing them back up the bridge of his nose. Everyone proceeded to turn into a squid—an octopus in Yvonne's case—and swim towards their next destination. Soon, Octavia formed on top of a spawn point, and she found herself facing a skyline, decorated by the numerous advertisements and signs that populated Inkopolis. Moray Towers.

It wasn't long before everyone started racing off the platform. It turned out the Vigilante ended up on her team, as he immediately put his Carbon Roller to the ground and started pushing it down the ramp, leaving a trail of orange ink behind him. His girlfriend jumped off the spawn point as well, turning into a squid and following him via the trail he left behind. Octavia, meanwhile, started heading down towards the center of the stage, with someone else not too far behind.

"Yvonne!" she gasped upon reaching the level just above the lowest point of the stage. The dark-skinned octoling had started to charge up her Hydra Splatling as soon as she emerged, a determined smile on her face.

"I am Yvonne, right!" she confirmed. "I on your team."

"I see that." She smirked. "Your hair's orange."

"And my hat?" She bowed her head, bringing attention to her camping hat.

"It's also orange."

"Exactly!" The girl with pigtails let go of the charge on her splatling, and a flurry of bullets flew out of it, raining down on the ground. The boy with dark skin and a sidecut dodge-rolled across the area, successfully avoiding the barrage of orange ink. He tossed a point sensor at them, causing a black arrow to swirl around the two girls.

"Sorry Yvonne; it's up to you now." Via put the bristles of her Octobrush Nouveau to the ground and started running down the ramp, taking a sharp turn towards the inkling boy at the bottom of it. However, with the point sensor marking her, he easily saw her coming. He shifted his attention from Yvonne to Octavia and pointed one of his Dualie Squelchers at her.

"Bold," he remarked. "I like that." The two started running towards each other, weapons in hand. Before the wavy-haired girl could swing her brush, he started firing, stopping her in her tracks and quickly splatting her. Just after her demise, an autobomb walked up behind him and exploded, splatting him as well.

Upon respawning, Via super-jumped to Yvonne and jumped right back down to the fray. Yet, no one was down there. The middle was almost completely orange, with specks of indigo ink dotting the area. The Vigilante was pushing his roller up a ramp, while his girlfriend ran behind him, holding a Splatterscope. The bronze-skinned inkling shrugged and placed a squid beakon near the ramp going up towards her team's base before following the other inklings.

As they headed up the ramps, a splat bomb suddenly dropped down on them. The group scattered in an attempt to avoid the bomb. Luckily, none of them splatted, though some indigo ink had splattered onto their clothes. The short-haired inkling looked up to the source of the bomb: an inkling girl with wavy hair and pale skin, carrying a Gold Dynamo Roller. She giggled and began to raise her roller, when suddenly, an orange beam pierced through her chest, splatting her with a scream.

"See that, Vigilante?" the Vigilante's girlfriend bragged. "I splatted her, just like that!"

"I did." He smiled. "Good job." He looked over at the ramp they were about to go up. "Let's keep going."

"Right!"

They continued running up the enemy tower, splatting anyone that came their way. Via even stopped to place another beakon along the way. Soon, they were at the platform just below the spawn point, with the short-haired girl splatting anyone who dared jump off it.

Yvonne caught up with them and asked, "This... I like no."

"Why not?" asked Octavia. "We're winning."

"It not fair. We splat the inklings when they spawn. There a word for it. But I no do know what."

"...Spawn-camping?"

"Yes, spawn-camping."

"Eh, it's not a big deal."

"I think it a big deal." She frowned. "I will pull back."

"Huh?" The wavy-haired inkling lowered her brush. "Yvonne-" Before she could finish her sentence, the dark-skinned octoling had already turned into an octopus, and a second or two later, she was flying down to the middle of the map, leaving a trail of orange ink behind her. "Ugh. She can be an idiot sometimes," she muttered to herself. "Can't she see this is working?"

"Ha ha!" the Vigilante's girlfriend laughed. "This is so much fun!" She sniped the enemies one at a time, with the boy with the ponytail finishing off as needed. Eventually, one slipped past them, dropping down to the level below.

"Hey, V-you," he started, turning to face Octavia. "Could you get that squid?" He paused. "Please?"

"Sure." She submerged herself in the ink and started swimming down the ramps in search for the runaway inkling. When she arrived at the next level, she quickly learned that the other team had slipped by their defenses... multiple times. The mostly-orange ground was streaked with indigo, all heading down towards the middle. "What...?" She looked over at her team's tower. Yvonne threw something, presumably an autobomb, before falling into the abyss and poofing into orange smoke. Standing where she once stood was another inkling with beige skin. He ran behind a box before making his way up the ramp, one powerful shot at a time. "I have to stop him!"

Octavia super-jumped to her used squid beakon and replaced it upon landing. From there, she pulled out the Tenta Missiles launcher and locked on to her target. With the press of a button, she fired some missiles and proceeded to run up the ramps with the bristles of her Octobrush Nouveau to the ground. Eventually, she encountered the beige-skinned boy, who was firing his Tenta Brella as fast as he can. _Maybe I can try an ambush?_ She continued running, eventually coming face-to-face with his back. She started to swing her brush back and forth, hitting him in the back. He let out a surprised cry and turned around, but it was too late. He had splatted.

"Booyah!" she cheered. It was then the Vigilante dropped down to him. He scanned the area and frowned.

"They really did slip past our defenses," he noted, putting a hand on his chin. "Well, no matter." He held up his Carbon Roller, much like if he was holding up a sword, triumphantly. "As the Vigilante, I'll stop any no-do-gooders from getting in our way!" He turned into a squid and swam off.

"Wait for me!" his girlfriend called, swimming after him.

The bronze-skinned girl was about to follow them, when she remembered she had placed a squid beakon in the enemy base. She super-jumped over to it, only to be met by the boy with the Dualie Squelchers. She splatted instantly. Octavia respawned, jumped off the spawn point, and surveyed the area. Ever since their team had been taken out, the map was quite even. She heard the machine activate behind her, and she looked over her shoulder to see the boy with the ponytail respawn, shaking some orange ink off of him once he reformed. He started to swim back towards the middle.

"Wait, Vigilante!" she called. He reformed into a kid on top of the box and looked up at Octavia. "How much time do we have left?"

"Umm... I dunno." He shrugged. "Like, a minute thirty?"

"A minute thirty." She clapped. "That's more than enough time!" She and the Vigilante continued to swim down towards the middle, where there would certainly be someone waiting. A point sensor fell down on them, marking them both with the swirling black marker. The girl with medium skin and long hair from earlier dropped down on them, holding a Sploosh-o-matic in her hands. She pulled out a curling bomb and began to cook it, in which she proceeded to drop the bomb on the ground. It travelled a few inches before exploding in indigo ink. The two inklings fell back, and the boy with the ponytail lifted his Carbon Roller for a vertical swing. He scored a direct hit on her, splatting her instantly.

"Booyah!" they both cheered. They began running up the ramps again, and by the time they got up to the next level, they were met with the boy with the Tenta Brella again. He brought up the durable canopy, protecting him from enemy fire. The Vigilante submerged in the ink for a little bit before emerging and throwing out an autobomb at him. It did a little hop before waddling towards the Tenta Brella user, which forced him to drop to the level below, where he was splatted by a charged shot. On the other side, his girlfriend looked over at them and gave a thumbs-up.

"K, let's keep goin'," he commanded. The two continued running up the ramps, when a giant wave of ink suddenly crashed down on them both, splatting them. Upon respawning, they proceeded to super-jump—Octavia to Yvonne, the Vigilante to his girlfriend. They jumped back down, ready to fight again. So much ink flew across the battlefield, keeping the middle area contested. A minute passed, and a whistle blew, stopping them in their tracks.

"Did we win?" the girl with short hair asked.

"I don't know," Via admitted. "It looks pretty even."

Judd and Li'l Judd arrived on the bump in the road, surveying the area. They did a dance before the smaller cat struck out an indigo-colored flag, marking the other team as the winner.

"Bullhead!" Yvonne cried. "I thinked we would be the winning!"

"What happened, happened," the Vigilante said. "We'll win again next time!" He looked down at his girlfriend. "Right?"

"Right!" She leaped into his arms, and the two hugged.

"Aww... how sweet," Octavia beamed.

Everyone proceeded to super-jump back to Deca Tower, where they would view the statistics of the battle.

"Woo!" the long-haired girl cheered. "We won by 0.1%!"

"We losed by a 0.1%." the dark-skinned octoling echoed.

"Anyways, Imma head out." The bronze-skinned inkling started walking out of the lobby. "See ya!"

"Be waiting for me!" Yvonne called. "I am the leaving, too!"

The Vigilante chuckled. "Alright. But if you need a guy, y'know who to call."

* * *

**A/N: It's hard to believe we're halfway through May not, isn't it? Anyways, here's a turf war chapter for ya! It's been a while since we've done one that's not a Splatfest. There's not much to see in this chapter, but prepare yourselves for next week - there's a ton of important information in the next chapter, specifically pertaining to two specific characters... Who? Wait until next week to find out! Until then, Branchwing, out!**


	53. The Cowardly Chicken

_Yuri's PoV_

"Chicken vs. Egg," Roy stated with a sigh. "I swear, these themes are getting more and more ridiculous. Besides, the chicken laid the egg first."

"No, the egg obviously came first," Octavia argued. "It's like how Marina reasoned—you need a chicken to lay an egg, and the chicken came from the egg."

"Whatever, it's a Splatfest," Perry said with a shrug. Much like the boy with hair swept to the side, he wore a white tee that denotated him as part of Team Chicken.

"It's the fun that counts," Yuri reminded them, winking. He himself had chosen Team Egg, like the other Rainbow Squids had done.

"Speaking of fun, where's Inigo?" Bonnie asked. "I thought he would battle with us."

"I dunno." Yuri rose from his chair and started stretching. "Let's hope he comes."

"Well, we can't just sit here," Roy noted. "I wanna get out there."

"Yeah!" Alexis agreed.

"How about we wait?" Bonnie suggested.

"Superfresh idea," the spiky-haired boy commented. "By the tower?"

"By the tower," she confirmed.

"Alright, we'll go to the tower. Maybe get our weapons, too," Roy announced.

Since they were in agreement, the Rainbow Squids started to walk over to the Deca Tower. Yuri pulled his phone out and started texting in the group chat their plans, mainly for Inigo's sake. After the message was sent, he then sent a quick text, asking what team the boy with the ponytail was on. He put his phone away and bumped into someone.

"I'm so sorry, I-" he immediately started to apologize. He stopped himself when he saw who exactly he had walked into. "Asher?"

The green-haired inkling gave a frantic nod. "I have to get out of here."

"Wait, why?" he tried to ask, but the young adult was already trying to rush pass him.

"I saw her; I-I can't let her see me," he replied in a panic.

"Who?" Roy asked.

He gestured for the group to follow him, and they ended up outside of the Grizzco building. He slumped against the graffiti-covered wall and sat down, knees tucked near his chest. He started fidgeting with the wristband that came with the Splatfest and muttered some self-encouragement before speaking louder, green eyes facing the younger inklings.

"Tiffany," Asher started to explain. Yuri heard a sharp inhale from beside him. His yellow eyes drifted over to find Roy, his mouth hanging open. "She's my ex-girlfriend. She's horrible, just horrible." He bit his lip. "She tries to get into your head, m-make you feel like you're nothing." He gulped. "I don't want anyone to feel t-that way. I don't know what she's planning, but it can't be good."

"That's..." Yuri frowned. "That's horrible." _How could someone do something like that?_

"It is," agreed the green-haired inkling. "She's haunted my dreams for years. Just when I thought I could move on, _she_ comes back. She's gonna find me, and then this nightmare will start up all over again."

"I hope she didn't see you," Bonnie wished. "I know what it feels like to have no way to escape."

"But your parents changed," Octavia noted before returning her attention to Asher. "Why can't this girl?"

"You don't understand," he cried. "She won't change. She wants to hurt you." He wiped a tear from his eye. "Just... s-stay away from her. Please!"

"Aight, aight, man." Perry kneeled down and gave a thumbs up. "We got this."

"How do we 'got this' if we don't even know what she looks like?" Via pointed out.

"We could just avoid everyone named Tiffany," Bonnie suggested.

"Oh, but one of my classmates is named Tiffany!" the spiky-haired inkling protested.

"It was a joke," she said rather flatly.

"I don't want to remember what she looks like," Asher muttered. "B-But, if you see a red-haired lady about my age, I bet that's her. Stay away."

"If you're not too keen on having this 'Tiffany' see you, then you'd best scram," Roy noted, crossing his arms.

"Yeah, yeah, I should." The green-haired inkling rose to his feet, adjusting his ponytail a little bit. "See you later." The Rainbow Squids said goodbye as he walked away, deeper into the city.

After Asher had left, Yuri turned to the tan-skinned boy and asked, "Any updates from Inigo?"

He pulled out his cellphone, and disappointment fell upon his features. "He said he's busy."

"_Again?!_" Alexis cried out. "What is _up_ with him lately?"

"I don't know, but we have a Splatfest to get to!" the dark-skinned inkling chirped. He patted the young inkling on the head before starting to walk towards the Deca Tower once more. "Woo! Let's go!"

The group entered the tower and started to head towards the interface that allowed them to access the room their weapons were stored in, like they had planned to after Inigo had or had not shown up. Roy entered in some information, and the plates shifted to reveal the stairs leading them to their secret room. Using his phone as a flashlight, Yuri searched for his Heavy Splatling Deco, which it did not take long for him to find. He hugged it for a few moments before letting it relax at his side.

"Hey..." Perry started. "Where's Inigo's roller?"

Yuri waved his phone around to find that his friend was right. "Shoot, yeah, it's gone."

"Did Inigo finally score a lady?" the pale-skinned boy joked. "Maybe he's showin' her his Carbon Roller." A few of them chuckled.

Roy's red eyes scanned the room and announced, "Well, we're ready." He started walking up the steps, Luna Blaster in hand. "Let's go."

"Yeah!"

They emerged from the private room, out into the crowded open. Roy and Perry departed into one of the lobbies, ready to face off against the opposing team, and the other squids were about to depart, too, when Bonnie told them to stop.

"Listen," she requested. They went silent, trying to listen to the noise around them. Yuri couldn't hear much else other than the idle chatter of inklings, but faintly, he heard...

"Is that... crying?" Via asked.

"Sounds like it," Alexis agreed.

They peeked around one elevator to find a short-haired girl with fair skin and teary, red eyes. She donned a yellow t-shirt marking her as a member of Team Egg. She clutched a canvas in her hands, and a Splatterscope was at her feet.

"Hello?" the beige-skinned girl greeted, kneeling down to meet her at eye level. "You OK?"

"No," the girl sobbed. "The V-Vigilante broke up with meeee."

Octavia stepped beside Bon-Bon. "Oh, I know you." She blinked, surprised. "Just a couple of days ago, you wouldn't leave his side."

The girl lifted her head to look up at the wavy-haired one. "Yeah, you're right," she confirmed with a sniff. "I-I made this painting of him." She turned the canvas around, displaying a detailed painting featuring the Vigilante in a hero costume and his fresh roller. "I was gonna give it to him last night, b-but then..." She let out another sob. "Oh, it's horrible! So nonchalant he was, breaking up with me like that!"

"He broke a girl's heart?" Yuri tightened the grip on his splatling. "Alright, this guy needs a lesson on respect."

"H-He's over there, if you want him." The girl lifted a quivering finger towards an inkling boy with white-colored hair tied up into a ponytail, marking him a member of Team Chicken. Several girls surrounded him, trying to touch him. With a blush on his face, he took a pen from one of the girls and signed her arm.

"Hey, Vigilante!" the dark-skinned boy yelled. The fair-skinned inkling snapped his attention over to him and stumbled over to him, the girls letting go of him.

"Yes?" he queried.

"You..." He pointed a finger at him, but soon, he lost his words. What was he supposed to say without being awkward? The Vigilante remained silent at this whole ordeal, keeping a charismatic smile. "You will battle me!" He ran over and grabbed the fair-skinned girl, who let out a squeak, before running back to the boy with the ponytail. "And, uh..."

"Leah," she said. "Remember me?"

"Yeah, I do," he replied. "I remember a lot of girls." He smirked, putting the wheel of his Carbon Roller to the ground. "And yeah, I'll battle you."

"Can we battle with you, Vigilante?" one of his fangirls asked. Surrounding her were two other inkling girls.

"Of course." He lowered his tinted shades and winked, and the girl who had just spoke swooned, putting her hands on her chest.

"So, that's that, then," Yuri muttered. He looked over his shoulder, towards his friends, and asked, "You squids wanna join?"

"We'll join," Via announced, stepping up with Bonnie.

"Yeah, and I'll go find my own battle." Shoulders slumped, Alexis lumbered away, into one of the many elevators.

_That was easy,_ he remarked silently. "The teams are set," the spiky-haired boy announced. "It's battle time!"

"Battle time..." started Leah, "...and revenge time."

The group walked into an empty elevator, and after everyone had entered, the door closed behind them, and it began to descend. With a hiss, it stopped, and the grate opened up beneath them. They turned into squids, slipping through the grate, towards their next destination. It did not take very long before Yuri emerged from a spawn point, facing some sort of shipyard. This stage happened to be one of his favorites—Sturgeon Shipyard.

It didn't take long before his team started inking their side with golden ink. Octavia launched herself off of the spawn point, speeding through the base with the bristles of her brush to the ground. Bonnie and Leah started inking paths to the various perches around the map, while Yuri focused on inking everything left over with his splatling. One couldn't win a turf war without a well-inked base, after all.

The first person to breech their base was one of the fangirls, who carried a standard Octobrush. Some golden ink had splattered onto her white shirt, suggesting that she had just come out of a fight. She stopped in the middle of the area, holding the brush under one arm while she messed with her short hair. The dark-skinned boy threw a splash wall in front of him and started charging up his Heavy Splatling Deco. The girl then noticed him and started running towards him, but before he could release a charge, a beam from his left pierced her side, splatting her. He looked over to see that Bon-Bon had fired a fully-charged shot from her Classic Squiffer. When their eyes met, she simply smiled.

"You saved me there, Bon-Bon!" Yuri complimented.

"You could have handled it yourself," she pointed out. "You had the splash wall and everything."

"Yeah, but you splatted her before my charge was even ready—so I can use this to ink turf instead!"

"I guess you have a point." Bonnie looked out in the distance. "I think it's safe to go ahead. Let's go."

The beige-skinned girl submerged in the golden ink to swim ahead, while Yuri ran up the hill, a charged splatling in his hands. He arrived on the centermost hill and released his charge, spreading many bullets of ink across the land. Once it was over, his hair started to glow, signifying that his special weapon was ready. He pulled out Bubble Blower and swung the wand, creating a bubble of golden ink. He started to swing it again, but something pierced him in his side, splatting him before he could create the second bubble successfully.

He respawned, a little disappoint. _It's OK,_ he told himself. _Being splatted during the special happens sometimes._ He super-jumped to Leah, who stood on the slow-spinning platform. It was tilted vertically right now, creating a useful vantage point. The red-eyed girl shot the lone bubble Yuri had created, causing it to burst in an explosion of ink. He heard a girl cry out, and beyond where the bubble had been, a white squid-shaped ghost floated off.

"Get off," she grumbled, pushing Yuri off the platform, onto the bridge. He nearly lost his grip on his Heavy Splatling Deco, but other than that, he was physically OK, though he had been a little wounded by Leah's dismissiveness. He rose to his feet, scanning the area quickly with his yellow eyes. He noticed the Vigilante advancing, the wheel of his Carbon Roller to the ground. Yuri backed up towards the edge of the platform, charging up his splatling again. The boy with the ponytail seemed to had noticed him, as he made a sharp turn to come up the bridge. He lifted the roller and jumped into the air, swinging it to create a thin wave of ink. It covered half of the dark-skinned boy with white ink, leaving him very close to death. He released the splatling's charge, pelting the boy in the torso with gold-colored ink, splatting him. However, it was not before the Vigilante got in another vertical swing, splatting Yuri as well.

He respawned to see that the opposing team had advanced quite a bit. Another girl from the opposing team paced around the lower area, spreading white ink everywhere with her N-ZAP '89. She suddenly pulled out some Tenta Missiles, looking around for a bit. Right as she fired them, another beam pierced through her, splatting her. Up on the red grates was Leah, her back up against the wall. A white marker surrounded her feet, and she looked up to find some missiles raining down on her. She turned into a squid to slip through the grate in an attempt to avoid them, but it was no use. One missile crashed into her head, splatting her.

When Leah respawned, she rubbed her head, saying nothing as she ran towards another perch again. Yuri stepped off the spawn point and started charging up his splatling again. His focus? Reclaiming turf. That was the point of a turf war, after all. And right now, Team Egg was losing. From the left side of the stage, where the middlemost area dropped off to access the main area on his team's base, a squid with a stored charge dropped in, a glow marking her position. She transformed back into a kid, revealing her weapon to be a Firefin Splat Charger. She patrolled the area, charge in hand. Someone else super-jumped to her, who just happened to be the Vigilante. She gasped upon sight of him, causing her to fire a poorly-aimed shot towards the ground.

"Oh, Vigilante," she swooned. "You super-jumped to me! Are you gonna protect me from Team Egg?"

"Mhm," he replied, nodding. "Team Chicken will win; I'm sure of it."

The Vigilante started running up a ramp towards the spawn, holding his Carbon Roller like a sword. Multiple vertical swings helped to create a path for himself, allowing him to swim his way up to them. Hiding behind a wall, Yuri charged up his Heavy Splatling Deco, which would help with stealth. He started to fire at the fair-skinned boy, peeking out from behind the wall. At sight of this, the Vigilante retreated, dropping down next to the girl with the charger. Little did he know, someone was waiting. Bonnie dropped down from behind them and released a shot from her Classic Squiffer, splatting them both.

"Booyah!" everyone cheered. Octavia joined the inkling with the double bun, some ink dripping off of her bronze skin. She stepped past her and cleared her throat to speak.

"I placed some squid beakons in the enemy base," Via announced. "I don't think they've noticed yet, so this is the perfect chance to regain a victory."

"You're the only offensive player here," Leah argued, sitting down on the grate. "The rest of us are defensive. We'll have to push into their base if we want to win."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Yuri asked, joining them. "Let's go!"

They started to reclaim their base, but before they could move in any further, the Vigilante appeared once more from the right side.

"Dang, they're fast," the wavy-haired girl remarked. "I got this." She started running towards him, bristles to the ground. Once she was in range, she started to attack him. With one swing of her Octobrush Nouveau, the weapon collided with the side of the Vigilante's head, and his tinted shades were knocked right off. The red shades skipped across the floor, eventually coming to a halt a few feet away from the edge of the map. The fair-skinned boy stood, dumbfounded, his neck craned to the side. Octavia had stopped attacking, instead diving into the golden ink and swimming away.

"Oh my cod!" one of the girls on his team squealed. "I gotta see his face!"

"No way!" exclaimed another girl. "Lemme see!"

"No, let _me_ see!" the third girl on his team pushed the girl with the charger out of the way and started running towards the Vigilante. Fearing what would happen, Yuri started running to another vantage point while charging up his Heavy Splatling Deco. Once she was in range, he released the charge and splatted her. Some golden ink splattered onto the boy with the ponytail's back.

The Vigilante regained his senses and felt his face. He mouthed something before swinging his roller vertically, creating a path, and swimming over to where his tinted shades laid. He emerged from the path and fell to his knees, dropping the Carbon Roller, and he picked up the glasses. He stood up with a smile, grabbing the roller along the way, but his smile fell when he noticed a golden beam pointing at him.

Standing from a perch was Leah, aiming her Splatterscope at him. "So," she started, "you care about your glasses more than women?"

"Y-You don't understand," he stuttered. "I-I can't let anyone see m-my face."

"Well, now I see your face," she fired back. "And I know who you are."

"N-No you don't!"

"Stop lying," she snapped. "I've seen you at school, hitting on girls, hanging out with your _real_ friends." She scowled. "Why aren't you with them right now? Too caught up in this?"

"Uh, Leah," Bonnie started, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Stay out of this!" she demanded, pushing the beige-skinned girl back. Bon-Bon let out a squeak, and the Vigilante flinched at the action. He remained silent at her questions, his mouth hanging open. "Answer me," she demanded.

"I-I..." he stuttered.

"Figures. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't splat you."

"I can give a few. One, so I can put these shades back on. Two, I know you won't expose me, regardless of what you do. Three, I don't think you have the heart to do so."

"You failed."

"Wh-" Leah fired her Splatterscope, piercing the boy in the chest. His possessions fell to the ground as he splatted into a puddle of golden ink, and they soon disappeared. Yuri presumed he would respawn with his tinted shades on, but he couldn't bet on it. The battle only got wilder, with all three girls constantly arguing over who, out of them, was better. The girl with the Octobrush elbowed the girl with the Firefin Splat Charger, stunning her, and with the force of the brush, she pushed her into the abyss. She proceeded to put her bristles to the ground and run up to Leah, who simply splatted her once she got into range.

The match ended not long after the whole ordeal, and everyone stopped inking turf. Octavia emerged from the ink and sat on one of the platforms, digging her hands into her cheeks.

"Ughh, we definitely lost," she whined. "And the Vigilante..."

"What about him?" Yuri asked, joining Via.

"I think I know who he is," she responded. "I'm not sure, but if I'm right, then it's not good."

"Who?"

She leaned over to him and whispered a name into his ear. "No. You're not serious," he whispered in disbelief, yellow eyes widening.

"I am," she countered. "I saw him up close. And it makes sense. Why he only has five tentacles and not six, why he's especially desperate to hide himself from us, and why Inigo's been gone lately."

"Now that I think about it... they sound identical, too." Yuri shook his head. "Well, if you're right, then we need to put some sense into him."

"Nah, that's Roy's job."

She giggled. "Yeah, that's true." A mischievous smile tugged at her lips. "But Roy doesn't know yet, so he can't."

Before they could continue their conversation any further, Judd and Li'l Judd made their appearance, doing their dance before the latter proceeded to strike out a white flag, marking the other team as the victors. Octavia and Yuri looked at each other and shrugged, and they proceeded to super-jump back to the tower. Judging by the map, Team Chicken did outdo Team Egg by quite a bit, but the imbalance was not as bad as Yuri thought. Some golden ink spotted the enemy base, presumably from Via's presence.

"W-Well, I have to go," the Vigilante announced. He started to step out the elevator. "Bye!" Before he could leave, however, Leah got out her painting and threw it at him. "Ow," he hissed, rubbing his back. He turned around and picked up the canvas. "Huh?"

"Take it, Ivan," she commanded. "I don't want it."

"My name's not..." He shook his head. "Never mind. Thank you." Leah did not respond. Gripping the painting in one hand and his Carbon Roller in another, he finally left.

"Let's go find Alexis," Octavia suggested afterwards. "We need to team up with her again."

"Right," Bonnie agreed. Yuri nodded as well, and they exited the elevator. It did not take long before they found the younger inkling. Alexis was hiding behind the elevator next to the one they just came out of.

"Al-" the wavy-haired girl started.

"Shh..." she shushed them. She gestured for them to join her, and pointed at the Vigilante, who was talking to a lady with red, long hair. Judging by the fact that she wore a sweater and not a t-shirt, this inkling was not taking part in the Splatfest.

"Is that Tiffany?" Yuri whispered.

Alexis nodded. "I think so."

They remained silent and started to listen in to the conversation the Vigilante and Tiffany were having.

"...think they found you out?" the lady questioned. The boy with the ponytail nodded.

"One of my exes called me Ivan. _Ivan_," he added.

"Don't worry," she told him. "No one will find out. If someone did, then you're just doing a lousy job."

"I'm not doing a lousy job. I'm doing great!"

"Are you sure about that?" Tiffany questioned.

"I..." He lowered his head. "No..."

She flashed a smile before continuing. "Hey, with this Splatfest going on... I'm looking for someone."

"Who?"

"The sister of a friend..."

"I hope she's not referring to Asher and Geneva..." Bonnie whimpered.

"She better not," Octavia whispered.

"Asher said to stay away," the girl with the double bun reminded in a low voice. "So don't go charging after her, please."

"...she look like?" the Vigilante asked.

"It's been a few years since I last saw her, but she should be around your age. Green hair, green eyes." She put her hands together. "Please, tell me if you see her. It's very important."

He blinked, surprised at her request, but then he smiled. "Alright. I will."

"Thank you." The two shook hands, and they parted ways.

"Shoot," Octavia swore. "She really is looking for Geneva."

"Good thing she's on vacation," Yuri assured, "or else we'd be in real big trouble."

"Still..." Alexis muttered. "I have a very bad feeling about this."

* * *

**A/N: Finally, we've learned Tiffany's motives. See, I told you not to trust her! Anyways... is Octavia's theory correct? Well, you'll find out next chapter. I'm sorry this is a little late, but it's still relatively on time, right? Branchwing, out!**


	54. Without the Mask

**Notice: A few lines from Callie and Marie are taken directly from the game.**

* * *

_Alexis's PoV_

While the Rainbow Squids, albeit Inigo, who was absent once more, were chatting, a pile of papers was suddenly dropped on their table. Their eyes drifted up towards the source—a familiar green-haired octoling, standing alongside his friends.

"Here," announced Giovanni. "My research."

Roy picked them up and started reading through it. "Huh. You're better at Inkling than I thought."

"Most of us, Octa Prisma, can write your language decently," he pointed out.

"Speaking Inkling?" Oscar questioned before shaking his head. "It is not the well." He quickly put a hand behind his head, blushing. "I am wishing I do, though. It be a dream of I."

"I am almost fluent in it," Brayden mused. "I have been interacting with your kind much longer than they have."

"Contractions be the confuse of us," Yvonne admitted.

"Contractions aren't _that_ hard," Perry said. "You just smash two words together and bam, contraction."

"So..." The yellow-haired octoling smiled. "Hel'ere?"

"That's... not a word," Bonnie pointed out.

"A for effort, though," Yuri encouraged with a thumbs-up.

"Anyways..." After Roy had put them down, Alexis slid the pile of papers towards her. "I'm taking this."

"What?" Gio gasped. "Why? I work hard on the research!"

"It's for... my friends," she explained carefully. Perry opened his mouth to elaborate, but the short-haired girl put a finger over her mouth, reminding him to be quiet about his encounter with she, Callie, and Marie a few weeks ago.

"The friends of you; they are here," Iris pointed out, gesturing towards the Rainbow Squids.

"I have other friends," she argued.

"Can't we at least read them?" Octavia asked.

"It's urgent!" Alexis argued, her brow furrowing. _I wish I could tell them the truth, but I can't!_

"If Alexis wants the papers, then it being more...uh...good, for Giovanni to do summary," the indigo-haired octoling countered. "We no argue this for long."

"A summary... I can do a summary," the green-haired boy agreed, putting a hand on his chin.

"Great, thanks." Alexis immediately picked up the papers and walked towards the manhole that would lead her to Octo Canyon, where Callie and Marie were presumably waiting. She slipped through the grate, and she popped out in the grassy area, donning the familiar hero suit. The Squid Sisters sat on a bench next to the shack, talking. Marie donned her kimono, while Callie donned her casual wear, minus the sunglasses. When they noticed her arrival, both of them waved.

"Hey, Four!" Callie greeted. After her peppy greeting, however, her shoulders fell, nervous. Her starry eyes glanced at her cousin for a second before returning their attention to the short-haired girl's orange eyes. "So, uh... remember how I tried to kill you?"

"Yeah, I remember." After the fight with DJ Octavio, no one really brought it up. Though, to be fair, this was the first time she had a casual conversation with the black-haired idol. Every other time had been business-related.

"Yeah... Sorry about that. I know I should had brought up sooner, but I just kept forgetting..." She smiled. "But I'm back on the up and up! Promise! In any case..." She stood up and pointed a finger towards the sky. "The Squid Sisters and the New Squidbeak Splatoon are ready to roll!"

"And you know the deal with me," started Marie. "I gotta hang out here until Gramps and Agent 3 come back from...whatever it is they're doing." She let out a sigh. "Seriously, where did Gramps wander off to..."

Callie gasped and sat right back down, crossing her legs. "Oh! That reminds me. Marie told me all sorts of wild stuff about you, Agent 4!"

"...What?" the orange-haired inkling questioned.

"She's been tracking your every move and logging it in her Agent 4 Factopedia! It's totally not creepy!" she replied.

While Marie remained speechless, Agent 4 remarked, "...Yeah, it's creepy." _I hope Gio doesn't have an 'Alexis Factopedia' somewhere._

Callie picked a green-and-orange notebook and opened it, beginning, "According to Marie's Agent 4 Factopedia..." She looked down at the first page and bubbled, "Guess which weapon you've been using the most lately, Agent 4! It's the Hero Dualies! ...Which isn't very surprising, I'll admit. But just like Sheldon told me, 'The better you get to know a weapon, the better it will get to know you!'"

"Yup, that sounds like Sheldon," Marie agreed.

"Anyways." She closed the notebook and set it down. "We got a bigger task at hand."

"Yeah, the Vigilante." The grey-haired inkling eyed the papers Alexis held. "What are those for?"

"Remember how I told you Giovanni was stalking the Vigilante to see what he can learn? Well, he came with these papers today, and he let me bring them to you," she explained.

"Huh, I guess octolings can do some good every once and a while," she commented. The Squid Sisters took them and began reading them over.

"Oh, he uses a Carbon Roller in turf wars!" Callie chirped. "Just like-"

"You'd might want to keep quiet," Marie interrupted her cousin. "We don't want to leak too much of Agent 3's personal life."

"Agent 3's personal life?" Alexis asked. She had always thought of the missing agent as this unstoppable force that she forgot that she was an inkling, just like her, too.

"Yeah, she came to Octo Valley to vent all the time," the black-haired inkling replied. "We weren't there all the time, but Gramps and Octavio do make for pretty good listeners."

"It was like a boke and tsukkomi routine every time I went there," the other idol added.

"So, anyways, about the Vigilante..." the bronze-skinned girl started again.

"Well, these papers say he's usually seen in the alleyway past the Grizzco building," Callie informed. "I bet that if we hide out there, we can ambush him and get the new Hero Roller back!"

"I've prepared a bunch of low-tide ink for this," continued Marie. "We _don't_ want to splat him on accident."

"Yeah, that would be bad," she agreed.

"We also found a bunch of armor. There're no spawn points anywhere around there, if memory serves. We have to be careful."

Callie tossed two black suitcases at Alexis. "Put these on while we change. We'll be right back out!" The two idols disappeared into the shack, leaving the short-haired girl at her lonesome. She opened one suitcase and immediately, she was equipped with a helmet and padded clothing. She then opened the second suitcase, which added a visor and extra padding to her armor.

"You're fighting another inkling, now?" someone behind her commented. She turned around to find DJ Octavio, sitting in his snow globe. "You splat-forsaken Squidbeak Splatoon are hypocrites, I tell ya!"

"Oh, shut up," she groaned. "We fight other squids in turf war all the time. Plus, we're not even trying to splat him."

"Whatever," he grumbled, crossing his muscular tentacles.

Callie and Marie emerged from the shack, wearing identical armored hero suits, though the former wore some shades, while the latter wore a white face mask. "We're back!" the black-haired idol announced.

"It's been a while since we wore these, hasn't it?" the grey-haired idol mused.

"Feels just like yesterday, right?"

"Eh... Anyways..." She lifted three tanks of lime green ink onto the bench. "Change your ink color to match mine, and we'll be on our way."

"Aw, but I like pink better," Callie muttered. "Oh, well." The ends of her tentacles turned lime green as she picked up one ink tank and slung it around her arms. She picked up the original Hero Roller, the wheel becoming slick with ink. Alexis also changed her ink color to match Marie's and picked up another ink tank, just like Callie had done. She spun one of her dualies in her hand as she waited for Marie to gather her belongings.

"Alright," announced the grey-haired inkling, holding the Hero Charger in her hands. "Let's go."

The three squids slipped through the manhole, arriving in Inkopolis Square seconds later, fully equipped. Some inklings gave them odd looks as they walked towards the alleyway, past Grizzco's. Callie directed them using a map that was included with Gio's research, and soon, they arrived in an alleyway. Clotheslines hung above them, and trash cans were lined up against the wall. Litter and graffiti decorated the corridor, making its danger clear. Callie and Alexis used the trash cans as cover, while Marie climbed up to a ledge, turning into a squid to make herself seem less visible. Now, all they had to do was wait for the Vigilante's arrival in silence.

It was not until sunset that a figure dropped down into the alley, balancing on a far-away ledge. The Vigilante. His red hair glistened in the sunlight, alongside the red wheel of the Hero Roller. A smirk lined his face as he did a few bounces, his stance telling that he was eager to act. Above Alexis, Marie reformed, stretching from the hours of idleness. She kneeled down and charged up her charger. She pointed it at the ground until the Vigilante started to stroll deeper into the alley. Then, she suddenly shot up and fired at his roller. He maintained a tight grip on it, flying back a few feet at the impact.

"Who's there?" he demanded. "The Vigilante will make you pay, no-good-doer!" The grey-haired inkling gestured for her allies to act, and Callie and Alexis jumped out at him. "Woah!" The latter fired at his chest, the ink sliding off of the hero jacket replica. He growled in pain, even though he seemed unharmed so far. Callie launched herself at him, Hero Roller in hand, but he simply pushed her back with the swing of his own roller. The wheels collided, sending the two back.

"Give us your weapon!" the black-haired inkling commanded.

"Why?" he asked. "I'm not handing this over."

"It's stolen property," the short-haired girl explained. "And Sheldon's offering a big reward for its return."

"And all signs are pointing to you as the thief," Marie added.

The Vigilante looked up at her, and he let out another growl. "So that's where that shot came from... No matter!" He stomped a foot on the pavement. "I'm not a thief; someone gave this to me! It was a gift!"

"Where's your proof?" Agent 4 snapped.

"Proof?" he retorted. "How am I supposed to give you proof? My words are proof!"

"Proof or not, you need to hand the roller over," Callie demanded. "Or we'll make you."

"In the name of...justice!" the young inkling added.

"Well, if you want this roller, you'll have to get through me, first!" He swung his roller at the black-haired lady's stomach, breaking one layer of armor and sending her back a few feet. While Callie crashed into the wall, he swung it again at Alexis's helmet, causing her to fall on the ground, landing on her butt. One layer of armor had broken, and a dull pain throbbed where the wheel had collided with her body. The Hero Roller was a dangerous weapon, and these swift attacks only rectified that claim.

"Ow!" Callie cried, gripping her gut. "That hurt!" She jumped to her feet and dashed towards him, knocking her roller into his. The two continued to fight, weapons constantly slamming into each other. Alexis got up and inked his feet, causing him to get stuck in the enemy ink. Callie slammed her roller into his once more, and the Vigilante fell off balance. Marie followed up with a charged shot that collided with his tinted shades, knocking them off. A thud sounded as he fell on his back, his body held down by the stolen weapon's weight.

Agent 4 walked up to him and put a boot on his chest, pinning him down. "Give it, now," she demanded, pointing a dualie at his head. Thankfully, he did not dare turn into a squid and try to escape. They had subdued him, and hopefully, he would give the roller back. The Vigilante's black hair tie had become loose, a smaller, sixth tentacle poking out from the bottom of it. His breathing was rapid, betraying his previously-confident demeanor. He even seemed to be muttering something to himself, something she couldn't clearly hear. At last, she looked him straight in the eye, her determined orange eyes meeting... scared, indigo ones.

She lowered her gun as recognition set in. _Inigo?_ she perplexed. He's _the Vigilante?_

"Oh, him," Agent 2 realized. "This just got a lot more complicated."

"Mhm," Agent 1 agreed. "I'd hate for this to leak out..."

He gulped. "P-Please don't kill me," he pleaded. He opened his fist, freeing the roller from his grasp. The black-haired inkling walked over to him and picked it up, now having two rollers in her hands.

"We'll be taking this," she announced with a straight face.

"Fine, take it!" Inigo cried. "Just please, _please_ don't kill me!"

"Calm down! We weren't even trying to kill you in the first place." She winked. "Promise!"

"Anyways, we're taking this back to Sheldon," Agent 4 informed him, pointing a second dualie at the new Hero Roller. "Don't try anything funny."

"I won't, I won't," fretted the boy with the ponytail, shaking his head. "I'm not dumb."

The group stared at him for a few more seconds before beginning to walk past him, back towards Ammo Knights, leaving the Vigilante alone in the alleyway, now powerless. At least they obtained what they were looking for. When they stepped into the weapon shop, Sheldon squealed upon seeing the Hero Roller.

"Yess! You got my baby back!" the horseshoe crab cheered. "Thank you, _thank you_ so much! I knew I could count on you!"

"Any time, Sheldon." Alexis smiled. "Any time."

Yet, her smile was not genuine. It quickly fell as the weight of what had just happened fell on her. Inigo was the Vigilante. The Vigilante was working with Tiffany, the lady Asher had warned against so much. ..._Inigo_ was working with Tiffany. And he had been the only member of the Rainbow Squids not to hear Asher's spiel.

To her, it seemed that her friend was going down a long, dark path, dancing with the devilfish.

* * *

**A/N: Yikes! Poor Inigo... Even if Alexis knows that he's the Vigilante, and Octavia and Yuri both suspect that he is, he can't reveal his secret identity to the public. Anyways, that brings an end to this arc, but don't expect the Vigilante and Tiffany to go away just yet... They'll be around for another season or two. Next week's chapter should be a breather, and the week after that... well, it'll be the two-part finale of Season 2! And, the day after part two of the finale is released, another bonus story will be released. That's right, we'll have two bonus stories between seasons 2 and 3, which should serve as character development and reveal some backstory for the POV characters each story focuses on. I've been on the fence on whenever to have one or two bonus stories for a while now, and this past week, I finally decided on having two stories. Stay tuned for what's the come, and Branchwing, out!**


	55. An Octopus of Many Talents

_Bonnie's PoV_

"Isn't this so exciting?" Octavia asked her blue-haired friend. Her hands were pressed against the poster that was framing every wall of West Inkopolis High School as of late. "The talent show's tomorrow night!"

"Eh..." she muttered. "Nothing exciting usually happens in those."

"You're squiddin', right?" she perplexed. "There's a lot of interesting stuff that happens! Remember those magic tricks that jellyfish and his shrimp friend did last year? Oh! Or what about that turf war skit from freshman year? Or Victor's juggling acts?"

"Name one crustacean that doesn't juggle," Bonnie challenged, crossing her arms.

"Uh... that crab who lifted a basking shark last year?"

"OK, fair point. But Via, we go to these every year."

"We go to the musical every year."

"But those are actually entertaining. A talent show is a mixed bag." Suddenly, Bonnie felt something brush her back, and she jumped. She turned around to see a piece of paper, floating down to the ground. She snatched it and read it out loud. "'Support Iris Thaumo at the West Inkopolis Talent Show. Or else.'" She lowered it. "Huh. I never thought of Iris as someone to be in talent shows."

"I don't know..." the orange-haired girl admitted. "This is Gio's right-hand lady we're talking about. I'm not sure if we should go."

"The 'or else' sounds a little threatening..."

"It's an empty threat. What's the worst that could happen?"

"She sends a hitman after us?"

"You're overthinking this. Besides, where is she gonna find a hitman?"

Bonnie sighed. "...You're still gonna go, right?"

"Yeah, of course! Are you?"

"Yeah."

Octavia wrapped an arm around Bon-Bon, pulling her closer to her side. "Great!"

Later, just as school ended, the girl with the double bun noticed Iris climbing into an unfamiliar car that was decorated with various graffiti.

"Wait, Iris!" she called, darting over to the octoling. The indigo-haired girl paused, and her eyes drifted over to meet hers. Out of breath, she asked, "Good... luck... on the... talent... show...!"

Instead of some rude remark, the octoling smiled. "Thank you." She sat down in the car seat and buckled up. "Will you come?"

"You're welcome," she said. "And yeah, I'm coming!"

Bonnie stood in place, waiting for the car to leave, but it remained. "So?" Iris started, eyes narrowing. "Go inside."

"Wait, you want me to come with you?" she asked for clarification. The other girl nodded. "Oh..." The blue-haired inkling pulled out her phone. "Let me text my mom first." After a quick text message, she climbed into the back of the car. Brayden was the driver, tan hands on the wheel. They began conversing in another language, much to Bonnie's irritation. She sighed and leaned back in the cushions. She watched the trees fly by as they drove to their next destination, wherever that was.

"Bonnie," Brayden spoke up. "I heard the Vigilante disappeared."

"You're not wrong," she confirmed. "He _did_ disappear a few days ago." She smiled. "We got Inigo back, though. Doesn't that count for something?"

"It be meaning I can do the battle of my color rival again," Iris commented, taking a sip from a water bottle.

"...Color rival?" The beige-skinned girl tilted her head, confused.

"Inigo is indigo, and I am indigo. We wield the rollers," she explained. "Inigo is my color rival."

"With that logic, wouldn't that mean Brayden's my color rival?" she wondered. "Even though I wield a charger and you wield a blaster?"

"Yes, you would be my color rival," the octoling boy confirmed. "Oscar's color rival is Octavia, and Yvonne's color rival is Yuri." She peered at the mirror, where the tan-skinned boy was frowning. "I do not know who Giovanni's color rival would be, though."

"The close is Alexis, but she is orange," Iris pointed out.

"Following your logic, Gio's color rival would be Geneva," Bonnie deduced. "But she's still on vacation..."

"The first thing Giovanni will do when she comes back is battle her, then," Brayden remarked. "I know it."

"I want to battle her, also," the indigo-haired girl announced. "Is personal."

In the mirror, he frowned. "Geneva..." He spoke the rest of his sentence in Octarian, a fact Bonnie was not too happy about. After he finished, Iris said something back to him, and he proceeded to say something back to her. It grew into a full-on conversation, and not a happy one, judging by their tone. They seemed to pay no attention to the inkling in the car with them, causing the blue-haired girl to sink into the cushions once more. She eyed her surroundings. A worn toolbox was up against the door, a picture taped to it. She leaned closer towards it, hoping to get the full details of the image.

Two octolings that both looked about fourteen were depicted in the picture, arms slung around each other. Not surprisingly, they both wore the octoling soldier's gear, goggles included. They both had contempt smiles on their faces, the boy on the left's bearing a grin, sending chills down Bonnie's spine. The posters in the background seemed to be anti-inkling propaganda, which did not help. Upon closer inspection, they appeared to be Brayden and Oscar.

"Umm..." Bon-Bon muttered, reaching out towards the toolbox. "What's the deal with this?"

The tan-skinned octoling glanced over his shoulder quickly before returning his attention to the road. "Oh, that?" he started. "I have a job fixing weapons at Nouveau. I bring it with me every shift. I also bring it everywhere." He chuckled. "The amount of Inkbrushes I have to fix is ridiculous."

"You fix weapons? That's so fresh!" she complimented. She realized that she had gotten distracted and slapped her cheek. "Uh, I mean, the picture on it."

"The picture? That was from when Iris and I still served in the Octarian army. ...You are aware of the Calamari Inkantation, right?"

"I don't know why it's so important to you, if that's what you mean."

"Really? I thought the others told the reason why to you."

"If they did, I don't remember them telling me."

"Then I will explain." He cleared his throat and began his story. "Two years ago, coming up on three, the dreaded Agent 3 came to DJ Octavio's lair, wishing to...stop him. As the battle grew more and more intense, the Squid Sisters hijacked Octavio's speakers, and suddenly, the Calamari Inkantation played. Hearing it, I realized that the life I lived was not for me. So, I left for Inkopolis, now free from the Octarian oppression." He paused. "The story is the same for almost all of the young octolings you see today. It was that powerful."

"Fresh." _But it sounds fake..._

"It turned out a little differently for me, though. You see, I used to be a spy for the army. But now, instead of spying on Inkopolis, I spied on the Octarians in an effort to keep the freed octolings informed. So, for two years, I lived a double life. I finally decided to quit after the Squid Sisters played Calamari Inkantation a second time. The dauntless Agent 4...stopped DJ Octavio again, freeing even more octolings. I figured it was too risky to stay in Octo Canyon. Besides, maybe someone else will take my role."

Bonnie simply blinked, soon nodding. "There's still one question I have... Why do Iris and Giovanni want to fight us inklings so badly?"

"I can the answer," Iris interjected. "Inklings splatted my friends; I have the grudge not again-"

"Against," Brayden corrected.

"Stop," she snapped at him. The other octoling tensed up and continued driving. "...Against inklings," she continued. "However, Giovanni thinks inklings strong. It is a challenge to him. Before Inkopolis, he never fighted one." A crunch sounded from the water bottle Iris held as she tightened her fist. "I have. I wished I do more to help, not cower. I paid the price. That is the grudge of mine."

"Oh... I can't relate," the blue-haired girl murmured.

"Figures."

The car stopped in front of an apartment building, and the three climbed out of the car and entered it. The receptionist didn't even bother to greet them, instead lazily looking at the computer screen. They stepped into the elevator, which took them up a few floors. They wandered the drab halls until they came across a door covered in stickers. Brayden unlocked it, and they stepped inside the apartment. The layout kind of reminded her of Asher's apartment, except the kitchen was more towards the back of the room instead of near the entrance.

"Please, hear my song," Iris pled. She ran to the only bedroom in the apartment and came back out with a sheet of paper, writing scribbled onto it. "You must like it."

"But what if-" Bonnie started.

"You do not have choice." She got out her phone and started to play a recording of a guitar. The octoling took a deep breath and started singing.

* * *

Bonnie leaned back in her chair, watching students do whatever they came up with for the talent show. The lights were dimmed, a spotlight focused on the person on stage. Right now, a few sea anemones were dancing to some foreign music.

"See, this isn't so bad," Octavia whispered to her friend. "Right?"

"It's entertaining," she agreed. "But I wanna see somethin' new now."

"Same. Watchin' some anemones dance gets kinda lame after a while."

The song finished, and the sea anemones struck a pose. They strutted off stage, making way for the next act—Iris Thaumo. The indigo-haired girl walked out on stage, holding an acoustic guitar in one hand. A jellyfish brought out a stool for her, and she sat down on it. She lowered the microphone and began to speak.

"Hello," she greeted. "I hope you are liking my song. I write my song myself. It was given edit by the friend of me, Brayden, and language teacher Ms. Vomer."

The crowd applauded, but quickly settled down as Iris began playing the opening chords of the song. It soon turned into a solemn melody, and she opened her mouth to sing.

"Many years ago there was a little girl. / All alone in the cold, cold world. / Her only friend was a pearl. / The beauty within an ugly oyster. / She realized there was no place for her. / She was only a pawn in the game. / She wanted to become something more. / She changed just to become better!" As her voice grew in volume, her tone had become more desperate. "But is this what she wanted? / Her life was terrible, still! / She only became unwanted! / And she paid, she paid, she paid a terrible price for it." The guitar only became more intense as she finished the chorus. However, it quickly calmed down as she moved on to the next verse.

"The girl, now a teen, wandered the halls. / She felt so lonely, so, so lonely. / Her only friendship was doomed to fall. / They changed paths at the age of fourteen. / And her new friends treated her like trash. / But she clung to them anyways. / Because she didn't want her life to crash. / Her life could not crash again!" She sung the chorus again, and after she finished, the guitar solo continued for quite some time. Its intensity continued on to the third verse. "One day, her friends died. / It was her fault, all her fault! / One day, she was summoned to face the tides. / She had lost all faith, convinced this would be the end!"

The guitar abruptly stopped, causing Via to jump next to Bonnie in her seat. "Don't worry," she whispered to her friend. "This is the best part."

Iris plucked a few strings, resuming the starting melody as she whispered her next few lines. "But then, the Dreaded returned. / Accompanied by a heavenly melody. / The girl's heart was set free, her beliefs overturned. / She realized there was more to life. / She could live a happy life in the city. / Away from the machine, reunited with her childhood friend. / Her ugly life had become pretty. / And finally, she was happy!" The more intense music returned as she sung a revised version of the chorus. "Finally, she had what she wanted. / Her life was beautiful, now! / She had become wanted! / And she lives, she lives, she lives happily ever after." She strummed her fingers against the guitar strings and finished, "And I live happily ever after." She repeated the notes, bringing the song to an end at last.

Iris let out a shaky breath, and suddenly, the crowd roared an applause. Everyone stood out of their seats, clapping wildly.

"Woo!"

"That. Was. Superfresh!"

"Oh my coddd!"

"Dang, Iris could outcompete me," someone commented from behind Bonnie. She looked over her shoulder to find Perry, clapping. "That voice is beautiful."

"Yeah, that was some top-notch music," Yuri agreed. "It's on par with that rap earlier."

The blue-haired girl smirked. "I told you Iris's song was amazing."

"I'm not gonna hear the end of this, am I?" the purple-haired inkling muttered.

"Yeah, Perry, you won't," Octavia teased. "We're gonna talk about this until we're all old and senile!" The four laughed.

"Seriously, we gotta compliment her on this," the dark-skinned boy suggested.

"I don't think we need to," Perry countered, pointing at the stage. Iris's indigo eyes became watery as she scanned the auditorium. She blinked, and tears started to stream down her cheeks as a wide smile came across her face.

"Thank you," she said. "Thank you very much!"

* * *

**A/N: Here it is... the last chapter before part one of the finale. Do you guys like Iris's song? I wrote it to be reflective of Iris's backstory, so how do you interpret it? Anyone who correctly interprets it gets a cookie. On the other hand, let's talk about the finale. Part 1 of the finale, which will be from Inigo's perspective, will come out on Saturday, while part 2 of the finale, which will be from Perry's perspective, will come out next Sunday. Then, the first bonus story will come out next Monday, and after that, we'll be on hiatus! Woo, it's been quite the ride... Thank you guys for reading "The Rainbow Squids" up to this point, and Branchwing, out!**


	56. Ghost Stories

**Notice: This chapter touches on events of Octo Expansion.**

* * *

_Inigo's PoV_

As Inigo drove on the streets of Inkopolis, he glanced at his phone—which he was using as a GPS—every once in a while. The coordinates to Tiffany's apartment were loaded in there. The lady had texted him that she wanted to see him. _For what?_ he wondered.

"You have arrived at your destination," the robotic voice of the phone informed. He parked in front of the building and walked inside. This apartment complex wasn't much different from the one Geneva and Asher lived in, though it was certainly more lively. Pictures of various residents were framed along the walls, which were painted with a variety of colors. Even the receptionist was lively, as her eyes immediately lit up upon seeing the boy.

"Welcome to Chromaments!" the manta ray greeted. "How may I help you?"

"Yeah, I'm here to see Tiffany Teuthis," he requested.

"Teuthis, Teuthis..." She started typing in the name into the computer next to her. "Ah ha! Room 216 is where she lives."

"Thanks."

"No problem! Come back soon!"

He walked over to the elevator, entered it, and pressed a button that made it rise to the second floor. As he waited, thoughts started invade his mind. _Please don't be mad, please don't be mad. I would have been killed if I didn't give it to them._ The determined faces of the three ladies that attacked him flashed in his mind. And now, the Vigilante was no more. Now, he was just Inigo... again.

The elevator stopped, and the doors opened. He stepped into the hallway and started walking down it. Unlike the lobby, the walls were painted orange. He recalled there being up to seven floors, so he started to wonder if each hallway was painted a different color of the rainbow. He didn't have much time to dwell on it, however, as he soon arrived at Tiffany's front door. He raised a hand and started knocking on the wood.

"Hello? Tiffany?" he called. "It's Inigo Sable."

The door opened, and once more, he stared into the lady's dark eyes. "Hi, Inigo. Come on in."

Greatly contrasting the rest of the apartment complex, the walls were painted grey. The boy with a ponytail sat down on a plaid couch, while Tiffany rested in a cushioned leather chair across from it. She picked up her tea and started drinking it.

"So, I heard you don't have that roller I gave you anymore," she started. "Is this true?"

He hesitated. "Umm..."

"I'm taking that as a yes," she deduced after taking a sip of her tea. "What happened?"

"These ladies attacked me, demanding that I give the roller back."

"Describe them."

"They all had green ink." He faced her dark eyes. "Like Marie! Y'know, of the Squid Sisters?"

"I'm aware. Continue."

"Well, one of them looked a lot like my friend. Bronze skin, short hair, orange eyes... you get the idea. She even had dualies! Another lady had a Hero Roller, with black hair and pale skin. I never saw her eyes—she was wearing sunglasses. Though now that I think about it, she kind of reminds me of Callie. The last lady had a Hero Charger. With grey hair and pale skin, she reminds me of Marie. I think her eyes were... gold? I'm not too sure, to be honest." After his description, he cleared his throat and asked, "But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Boy, you're asking the wrong questions."

"I am?"

Tiffany got up and walked up to his chair, kneeling in front of him. She tapped his nose and continued, "You're the Vigilante; no one can stop you. Not even if you lose your weapon. Those ladies were a test to your commitment. And you failed it."

"I'm sorry, I won't do it again!"

"Good."

_It's stolen property. And Sheldon's offering a big reward for its return._ The words of Alexis's doppelganger echoed in his head. For a moment, he thought about mentioning it to the red-haired lady, but he ultimately decided against it. There was no way Tiffany could be a thief. She was so kind, even if she was snappy at times. Thus, he was determined to keep her trust. She's done so much for him in such a short period of time; he had trouble imagining where he would be right now without her. _I'd still be a loser, still flirting like I used to._ "So, what do I do now?" he asked instead.

"I have a new weapon for you," she replied. She pulled out another roller that resembled the new Hero Roller, but in actuality, it appeared to be a repainted Carbon Roller. "It's just a Carbon Roller," she explained, confirming his suspicions, "but this fresh new coat of paint should fool people into thinking you still have your roller."

"Fresh!" Inigo snatched the roller out of her hands and put it away. "Thanks!"

"No problem." She pumped a fist and announced, "Let the Vigilante rise again, rise again to be envied by all!" She lowered it and whispered, "Oh, and don't forget that girl I was talking 'bout at the Splatfest. I still haven't found her."

"Got it." The boy with the ponytail put the new roller away and started leaving the apartment. "See you later."

"You too," she called back. "Keep me notified!"

"I will, I will."

At first, he quickly walked down the hall, eager to get back to his car, but as he neared the exit to Chromaments, some thoughts started popping up in his mind. Now that he had a new roller than looks a lot like the old one, he could become the Vigilante again. Yet, he hated spending so much time away from his friends. But, if it helped him reach his goals, it was a risk he was willing to take. On the other hand, the Rainbow Squids seemed so relieved when he showed up to their table in Inkopolis Square again for the first time in a few weeks. _Perhaps the Vigilante should come back tomorrow, then._

The fair-skinned boy crawled into the vehicle and drove closer to the square. He parked at the parking space nearby—cars were not allowed in the square for obvious reasons—and hopped out, running to his next destination. As he journeyed over there, he suddenly had the fear that he would drop his new roller before remembering that it was concealed, making it impossible to drop. In the midst of the heavy breaths he took, he managed to let a sigh of relief escape his lips. At last, he had arrived at Inkopolis Square, stopping to catch his breath and gripping his knees. Afterwards, he rose, and he strolled his way towards the Rainbow Squids.

"Hey, Inigo!" Yuri immediately greeted. "Did you see Pip's story on Squidsagram?"

"...What story?" The indigo-haired inkling pulled out his phone and immediately opened up the social media app, directing himself to Pip's profile. He clicked on their icon, which led to a preview of Pip and another inkling, standing outside of a subway entrance. "This one?" he asked, showing the group his phone screen.

"Yeah, watch it," Octavia confirmed.

"OK." He turned the device back towards him and tapped on the screen, allowing it to play. He could not hear the audio very well, but he still understood what was happening. The two inklings ventured into the subway tunnel, entering a dark area, with only a flashlight illuminating the surroundings. They started talking among themselves when suddenly, the light caught a glimpse of green ink that stained the side of the tunnel. It was edged with strange turquoise ink, almost as if someone had splatted right there.

Inigo turned the volume up and was immediately met with a feminine scream echoing off of the walls. Pip and their friend looked at each other, nervous. Footsteps sounded, steadily getting closer and closer to them. It was then they started screaming expletives and bolted out of the subway tunnel, back into Inkopolis Square. The video ended, and the fair-skinned boy lowered his phone.

"Now ya got it?" Perry asked. "A bunch of squids have been heading down there 'cause of Pip's video, and now everyone's been calling that thing you heard a ghost."

"They've been chased out by the ghost every time," Alexis elaborated. "And I wanna get to the bottom of this."

"Everyone does," Via noted.

"Which is why we've agreed to go down that subway tunnel," Roy concluded.

"What?! Without asking me?!" Inigo exclaimed in disbelief. _They almost always consult me on everything!_

"I mean..." Bonnie scratched the back of her head. "You haven't been showing up a lot lately."

"Whatever we choose without you still happens to work out," the purple-haired boy pointed out. "So, whatever."

Inigo released the tension from his shoulders and sighed. "Yeah, I guess."

"To be fair, you wouldn't really know what happened while you were gone until we tell you," Bon-Bon considered.

"Mhm," he agreed. He put his hands together and started, "While I don't think this is a really good idea, let's go check out that spooky ghost in the subway!"

"Yeah!" everyone cheered.

They rose from their seats and started heading towards the entrance past the studio, towards the direction of Starfish Drinks. They pushed the gate opened and descended underground, with Roy leading them. He used his phone as a flashlight, a beam shining just below the camera. Unsurprisingly, given the humidity, water dripped off the ceiling, sometimes landed on the group of inklings. Merely an annoyance to them, the curious Rainbow Squids only had but to trek on.

It did not take long from them to find their first sign of life—green ink and turquoise ink was splattered onto the floor, now slowly disappearing. There was less of the former than the latter, an oddity if one assumed that they appeared at the same time.

"This weird-lookin' ink..." Bonnie kneeled down and touched a beige hand to it. The goop stuck to her, dripping off of her fingers. "It's thicker than normal."

"I don't think you should be touching that," commented Alexis, grimacing.

"What? It's just ink," she puzzled, her blue eyes looking back at them.

"You said it yourself, it looks weird," Perry noted.

"Yeah, I did. I'll stop now." She glanced at her hands. "But it's just sticking to me. Hmm..." Bonnie changed her ink color to green and hopped into one of the green puddles, submerging in it as a squid. She emerged a few seconds later, the turquoise ink now absent from her hands. She stepped out of the ink puddle and changed her color back to blue.

"Alright, let's not step in that, then," Inigo concluded, navigating himself around the ink puddles. "Let's keep going."

The Rainbow Squids continued walking, seeing more and more ink puddles as they headed deeper inside, some puddles being more recent than others. Oddly enough, they heard no screams as of yet, puzzling Inigo. _That's weird_, he noted silently. _I would've thought we would hear something by now._

Eventually, they came across a fork in the tunnel, splitting off into three different paths. To the left, straight ahead, or to the right. Roy started heading straight, but the indigo-haired boy was quick to stop him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Wait," he said. "What if the others want to go another way?"

"Why not this way?" the other boy questioned. "We won't get lost if we keep goin' straight."

"I know, but who knows what fresh things we could find if we go a different way?"

"You're not making sense, Inigo. We're going straight."

"Yeah, it would be better to go straight," Alexis piped up in agreeance.

"I don't know, I kinda wanna explore this whole thing!" Yuri disputed.

"Same," Perry agreed.

"I think we should go straight," Bonnie mused. Via nodded in agreement and looked over at Yuri and Perry.

"Majority rules," she sneered.

"Oh, fine," the purple-haired boy groaned.

"I mean, that's fine with me." The yellow-haired boy simply shrugged.

And thus, the group continued heading the same direction as before, heading deeper into the subway. Some moans could be heard from overhead, sending a chill down the fair-skinned inkling's back. The subway slowly became more and more decorated as they headed deeper in, now being decorated with various posters. Fluorescent lights hung above them, and a few booths and vending machines were set up. The rails the subway trains would ride around on started to become evident.

"Wow," Octavia muttered. "I don't think anyone else has gone this far in."

"Yeah," Yuri agreed. "That has to be a good sign, right?"

"I don't know. It's quiet..." Inigo muttered. "Too quiet."

Suddenly, rapid footsteps sounded from above, causing the Rainbow Squids to freeze in their tracks.

"W-What was that?!" the wavy-haired girl gasped, hiding behind her beige-skinned friend.

"I don't know," Alexis announced. "Stay alert." She then pulled out an orange weapon that appeared to be some kind of shooter.

"What? Alexis! What are you doing?!" Via called.

"Via, don't worry," she assured her sister. "It's just a weapon."

"Well, why did you pull it out?" she demanded.

"What if something jumps out at..." A small piece of notebook paper suddenly floated down on her, getting in her face. She swung her arms to grab it, and the paper crunched in her hand. She unfolded the wrinkled paper and read it. "...'Leave, now.'"

"Ha!" Roy cheered. "So there _is_ a ghost!"

"No, that's a bad thing!" Bonnie cried. "If the ghost wants us to leave, then we should, or else we're probably gonna be dinner."

"You worry too much, Bon-Bon," Perry noted. "I doubt some random ghost would want to hurt us."

"Uh, did you even listen to the videos?!" she argued. "There's always a feminine scream."

"Quote, 'feminine,'" he countered, doing air quotes.

"So by 'us', you meant you and the guys," Octavia concluded.

"Yea... Oh."

Alexis snickered. "See? Now ya got some sense!"

"Let's keep going," Inigo suggested.

"Oh, alright..." Bonnie let out a sigh, and they moved onward.

The tunnel gradually became more and more open, making way for even more posters to decorate the walls. He spotted a security camera or two, but he figured it was nothing serious. No one really used this particular subway anyways, so he figured that the cameras would be practically useless. The entire time, though, footsteps sounded above them, putting the entire group on edge. Alexis had her weapon out at all times, ready to fire if needed. Of course, they spotted the occasional green and turquoise puddles, but there was no life to be found outside of them.

Suddenly, after some minutes of walking, Roy held out his arm. "Look," he whispered, pointing to a platform above them.

Standing on top of something raised was a funny-looking inkling girl about their age, with curly, magenta hair and matching magenta eyes. Her light brown hands beheld a small, textured object, but Inigo couldn't make out the exact details. Her clothes were black and leather, with her boots doubling as heels. Two yellow bands circled around one wrist and one ankle. A glowing, blue sea cucumber beckoned her inside the subway cart. She put the object away and walked inside. With a hiss, the train sped off, leaving the Rainbow Squids behind in the smoke. They coughed and moved their arms around to dispel the gas.

"That was...a bad idea," the indigo-haired boy concluded, still coughing.

"But we learned something," Bonnie noted. Her words were interrupted with a cough. "That door there leads to somewhere."

"You're right." Yuri smiled. "Let's check it out!"

"Yeah, it can't be _that_ bad," Octavia agreed.

"Then it's settled. Let's super-jump up there," Roy commanded. Everyone nodded, and, turning into squids, they flew up to the platform. The red-haired inkling happened to land on the raised platform the mysterious girl was standing on before, and on contact, a glass barrier appeared around him. "Woah!"

"Roy, what's goin' on?!" Perry demanded, bewildered.

"I dunno! I..." He studied the holographic screen that had popped up in front of him. Inigo went behind him to read whatever text had popped up, only to find out it was not in Inkling. However, there were pictures of weapons on the screen. "I think it wants me to choose a weapon?"

"A weapon?" Alexis stood next to the boy with the ponytail, studying the screen. "I don't trust this thing," she muttered, eyes narrowing.

"There's a Jet Squelcher, a Rapid Blaster Pro, and an Octobrush," Yuri commented.

"So, which one will ya pick?" asked Inigo.

"Personally, I wouldn't pick any of them."

The Rainbow Squids looked around for the source of the new voice. Suddenly, something, or rather, someone, dropped from the ceiling. Landing on her feet, a green-haired inkling girl rose from a kneeling position to a standing one, and now she stared at them with tired eyes. Her fair skin seemed to be paling, and she wore a classic hero suit, accented with sky blue lights, alongside a battered cape. In one hand was a Hero Shot.

"I told you, you need to leave," she said. "It's too dangerous down here, and I don't want any of you squids getting hurt today."

* * *

**A/N: And here we are! Part one of the Season 2 finale at last. I've always planned for the Rainbow Squids to explore the Deepsea Metro, but what would originally happen was totally different. It was only going to be one chapter, and they brought home a sanitized octoling instead of what they will be doing next chapter. Sounds pretty cool, right? Well, as the story evolved, I ultimately decided against it, leading to what we have today. I hope you like it! Stay tuned for part two tomorrow, and Branchwing, out!**


	57. Leave, Now

**ATTENTION: This chapter covers content from Splatoon 2's Octo Expansion.**

**With that out of the way... time to answer guest reviews!**

**Firemaster0730: I'm glad you like Inigo! For a story that is as character-driven as this one, it makes me happy to here that I'm succeeding in humanizing everyone. Well, Inigo, at least. In the earlier chapters I had the most trouble marking his personality down, while nowadays it seems to be Octavia I have the most trouble writing. Maybe this difficulty is a sign I'm doing well? Humans are complex, after all, and so should your characters! And humans change, too! That's why Inigo, for example, starts thinking about Geneva less and less as the story progresses, as he realizes he has to let go of her if he really wants to get anywhere with someone else. It's also why he's become more flirtatious and desperate, too. Anyways, to answer your question - there is not a fanfiction before this one. I try giving backstory in the form a flashbacks, and since "The Rainbow Squids" is going to be a longg one, I have plenty of time to do that. I apologize if Inigo's flashback in chapter 13 seems a little different from everything else up to that point - it's supposed to represent a different time, after all. And I'm glad you enjoyed Asher's reaction to the soap opera. I always found that moment to be a little funny.**

**Well, enough rambling from me, it's time to get to the story!**

* * *

_Perry's PoV_

Octavia crossed her arms. "Shouldn't _you_ leave too, then?" she challenged. "You said it yourself, it's 'dangerous.'"

"That's different!" the mysterious inkling protested. "The only reason I'm still down here is because I need to find someone."

"Who?" Perry asked.

"An old man. He's kind of my mentor," she explained. "I'm really hoping he's with..." She shook her head. "Never mind."

"How do you... eat?" Roy asked. He still remained inside the barrier, and he leaned against the glass wall. "All I've seen down here are weird ink puddles."

"I know how to get to the surface from here," she pointed out. "I just go up there." The green-haired girl shook her head. "I'm getting distracted. You need to leave."

"We came here for a reason," Inigo started.

"And that's to find the 'ghost' everyone's been wondering about on Squidsagram," Alexis concluded.

She blinked. "A ghost?"

Perry showed the girl a post he had saved to his phone. "Read it, it'll tell you."

She read it, and with a frown, she pushed the phone back towards the pale-skinned boy. "I think I'm the ghost everyone's talking about. Sorry to disappoint you."

"What? We gotta let everyone know!" Octavia exclaimed.

"Please don't," the girl groaned. "If people know, then they'll only be more people down here, and it's only a matter of time before someone gets hurt by one of these things."

"Oh." The wavy-haired girl had taken her phone out, and now she was putting it away. "Sorry. I got too excited."

"Well, I'm still not leavin'," Yuri proclaimed. "I wanna see what's down there." He pointed to the dark room past the decorated walls.

The girl raised an eyebrow. "If we go down there, then will you leave?"

The Rainbow Squids looked at each other before all nodding. "Yes," Roy stated. He pressed the icon with the Rapid Blaster Pro on it, and moments later, the selected weapon suddenly appeared in his hands. The barrier retreated back into the ground, and he stepped off of it.

"Oh, me next!" Via stepped onto the platform, and like with the tan-skinned boy, a barrier appeared around her as well. She selected the Octobrush, and much like with Roy, the weapon appeared in her bronze hands a few moments later.

The next person to step on was Bonnie. "Hmm... The only weapon I can choose is the Jet Squelcher," she noted. The beige-skinned took the weapon and stepped off the platform as well. When Perry tried to use it, nothing happened.

"If all of you want to fight, then I'll be right back." Turning into a green squid, the girl super-jumped back into one of the vents above them. The purple-haired inkling heard footsteps pound on metal above them, getting softer as the new inkling sped away. To fill in the silence while they waited for her return, they chattered.

"So, the 'ghost' turned out to be a girl," Roy started.

"I'm not surprised," Alexis admitted.

Via looked at her sister. "You aren't?"

"The moment I saw those puddles of ink, I knew something was up with this place," the short-haired girl explained. "That girl's hair was green, so she's probably the one splatting...whatever's down here."

"Aw, but the ghost thing was super fresh," Perry groaned.

"At least we found the 'ghost,'" Yuri pointed out. "That has to count for something."

"Yeah," Octavia agreed. "I can see it. The Rainbow Squids, who found the mysterious ghost in this subway. Even if we can't get proof."

"But that girl isn't a ghost," Alexis deadpanned.

"Just let me have my moment," she muttered, disappointed.

Before they could continue any further discussion, a weapon dropped to the ground. And another. And another. And another. Finally, the mysterious inkling dropped to the ground, the pile of weapons in front of her.

"These should work," she announced. The inklings without weapons walked up to the pile, examining it. Lying on the ground was a splatling, some dualies, a roller, and a slosher, all having black-and-red accents.

"Wow," Perry marveled, picking up the slosher. "Where did ya get these?"

"I beat up some octolings and stole their weapons, nothing special," she explained.

Yuri grimaced at her words. "Gruesome, but... OK!" He picked up the splatling.

"I appreciate the effort, but..." Alexis held up her shooter. "I already got a weapon."

"You did?" the green-haired girl puzzled.

"Mhm." The short-haired girl held out her weapon, and the other girl examined it.

"Where'd ya get it?"

"Uh... Well... Uh... My friend gave it to me, but Sheldon upgraded it for me. We kinda have a deal."

"Ah... OK." She picked up the dualies and threw them over the platform. "Guess I got these for nothin' then."

Without saying anymore words, Inigo proceeded to pick up the roller, and they all followed the green-haired girl to the gate. She changed her ink color to magenta, in which the rest of the inklings proceeded to copy her actions. She pulled a blue object out of her pocket and swiped it across the card reader at the gate, opening it and propelling the group forward. They landed on a checkpoint than glowed magenta when they stepped on it, and in front of them was a launchpad of the same color.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." Alexis murmured.

The long-haired girl was about to step on the swirling circle when Perry noticed a symbol etched on the back of her cape. A silver 'three'.

"Wait... A three..." he mused.

She looked over at him. "Yeah, what about it?"

"You're wearing a hero suit, your cape says 'three', and Gio likes to blab about 'the Dreaded Agent 3,' so..." He looked into her eyes, ones that had become nervous. "Are _you_ Agent 3?" he asked with some venom, remembering Iris's story of how the inkling had killed her friends.

"Woah, Perry, what's gotten into ya?" Yuri whispered to his friend.

She remained silent for a few moments, shocked. Then, she gave a solemn nod. "Yes, I am Agent 3."

"So, Giovanni wasn't making up stories after all..." Bonnie realized. "There really _is_ an Agent 3."

"Who _is_ this Giovanni guy?" the fair-skinned girl asked.

"He's an octoling," Roy explained. "He leads our rival team, Octa Prisma."

"I see..." She stepped onto the launchpad. "Let's go." The Rainbow Squids followed her and stepped onto it as well, and soon, they super-jumped down towards the arena, which was illuminated by warm-colored lights. A turquoise puddle of ink with a soapy texture sat in front of them. _Just like the random puddles of ink we've been seeing._

"Is this it?" Octavia questioned. "Doesn't seem very exciting."

"Wait." Agent 3 put an arm out in front of them, beckoning for them to stop. Electricity started to crackle around the puddle, and suddenly, a bright light appeared as something large emerged from it. The light faded, and several loaves of swirled bread with faces popped out of the various ovens that decorated the machine. "A boss!" she exclaimed.

"..._Octo Oven_?" the short-haired inkling perplexed.

"Is that its name?" the long-haired girl queried.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure," she answered.

"Huh. I don't know how you know that, but I'm just gonna go with it." She pointed her Hero Shot at Octo Oven. "Stay back, and don't get splatted. You never know what to expect from these guys."

"What about you?" Inigo asked.

She looked over her shoulder and smirked. "I'll take it from here."

The oven beeped and opened one lid, which proceeded to launch a loaf of bread out of it, aiming for Agent 3. She rolled out of the way and threw out a curling bomb, allowing a swift escape. Meanwhile, blobs of ink fell at the Rainbow Squids' feet, causing them to step back. They looked up at the source—a few green creatures situated on top of the oven.

"Are those... Octarians?" Yuri marveled.

"Yeah, and they're definitely gonna try and splat us," Alexis confirmed.

"Yo, this seems unreal," Perry blurted. "It's like they jumped out of the history textbook."

"But aren't Octarians like, red or somethin'?" Octavia puzzled. "These are green!"

"I guess they came back from the dead," the pale-skinned boy joked.

"OK, but like Agent 3 said—we gotta stay out of the way!" Inigo urged.

The Octarians spat another round of projectiles at them, causing them to scatter even more. Suddenly, Yuri started charging up the splatling he got from Agent 3 and fired at them, causing them to explode into puddles of magenta ink.

He shrugged. "Might as well help her!"

Suddenly, the entire oven shook, and every single loaf of bread fired out of it, remaining in place. A huge blue-and-green tentacle now hung limply at its top. _Just like Octonozzle,_ Perry realized. _Except different._ In the corner of his purple eyes, he could see the long-haired girl climb up the loaves until she reached the top. She quickly splatted the remaining Octarians and started aiming for the central tentacle, quickly popping it. She grabbed a can before super-jumping back to where Inigo currently stood, far away from the action.

"Easy," she breathed, tossing the can up in the air. "Who wants this?"

"What's in it?" Alexis asked.

"Ink Armor," she replied.

"Shouldn't you keep it, then?" the boy with the ponytail suggested.

"I don't need to." She tossed the can to Inigo and watched as the huge tentacle reappeared on Octo Oven. It dove into the oven, and some of the paneling fell away to reveal steel. It shot out some ink pistons, landing around the group. Some sprinklers and more Octarians appeared on it and it proceeded to roar, clearing the existing ink from the area. Agent 3 let out a sigh. "OK, now this got more complicated." Suddenly, a Baller appeared around her, and she started running away. "Deal with the sprinklers; I'll distract the boss."

"Got it," the fair-skinned boy said with a smile.

"Wow, how could she do that?" Yuri wondered. "The Baller thing."

"Yeah, I would've expected a Splashdown," Roy agreed.

"Focus," Alexis egged. "We gotta take out the sprinklers." Turquoise ink was already surrounding them, making it harder to walk around. Perry trudged in the ink, towards the nearest sprinkler. He threw some ink from the slosher up at it, breaking it instantly.

"There," he proclaimed, putting a hand on his chest. "We got one!"

"There's still more, though," Inigo pointed out. "Let's get the rest."

"Mhm." Roy fired a blast from the Rapid Blaster Pro, creating a path for the squids to swim in. Octavia, on the other hand, ran ahead with the Octobrush, which also created a path. They followed the paths, swinging around the machine and breaking the sprinklers one-by-one. They soon came across Agent 3 once more, who now paced around the arena on foot, dodging the ejected loaves of bread.

"The sprinklers are gone!" the short-haired girl announced, pumping a fist.

"Fresh." The long-haired girl gave a smile, but then her eyes drifted up to the top of the machine. "But we still have the Octobombers to deal with."

After she finished, one of the aforementioned Octobombers noticed them and hurled a splat bomb out of its mouth. Upon sight of this, she jumped into the air, a magenta circle appearing around her. She crashed to the ground with a fist, creating an explosion of ink around her and destroying the bomb. She rose to her feet and watched as Octo Oven began to shake once more before launching all loaves of bread from the oven.

"I'll get it!" Perry announced, inking the side of the bread and starting to climb it. Suddenly, a bomb fell from above, bumping him on the head. "Ow..." He rubbed it, but moments later, he realized it was about to blow up. In a panic, he jumped down to the loaf below and watched as the bomb blew up into a puddle of turquoise ink. It was then a stream of magenta ink shot through the air from somewhere, piercing the Octobomber. As it splatted, it let out a garbled cry, and the pale-skinned boy turned to face the source of the charged shot.

Flying towards the ground were the weapon testers that had previously accompanied Alexis back when Sheldon's new Hero Roller was missing. The black-haired lady held a classic Hero Roller, while the grey-haired lady held a Hero Charger.

"We're here!" the roller wielder announced.

"Just in time, it seems," the charger wielder added.

Alexis ran over to them. "You followed us here?"

"Well, we saw you going down here," the grey-haired inkling started. As Perry listened in on the conversation, he fell off the bread loaf as it retreated back into the oven.

"So some time passed, and we thought you and your friends were in trouble," continued the black-haired inkling.

"So yeah, we did follow you down here," she concluded. "Sorry."

"It looks like you got everything under control, though." The other lady gave a big smile. "Which is superfresh! How did you manage it?"

"They had me," Agent 3 answered, walking over to them.

"Three!" the charger-wielder gasped. "I thought you were with Gramps!"

"He called you?" she perplexed.

"It's more like I found him in a weird chat room," she explained. "He said you two were doing fine."

"How long ago was this?"

"About two months ago, why?"

She blinked. "If that was two months ago, then..."

"Then what?"

"It's nothing," Agent 3 muttered. "I was just thinking."

"Um... OK."

"Talk to us if something's up, OK?" the black-haired inkling offered. "We're there for you. Promise."

The long-haired girl smiled and let out a chuckle. "Thanks, you two." Her eyes returned to the boss. "But now's not the time to be messin' around."

Perry heard something rattle behind him, and he looked over his shoulder to find the oven lid about to bust open, revealing the loaf. He rolled out of the way, his hoodie becoming covered with sticky turquoise ink. He muttered a curse and rose to his feet, wiping the enemy ink off of him. He swung his slosher, creating a path for him to escape in, and swam away.

After he emerged from the end of the trail, he found Yuri, firing up at the Octarians with the splatling. One smaller Octarian started to fly down towards him, shooting out a blob of turquoise ink, but it was immediately obliterated by the rapid-fire bullets from the splatling. Some magenta ink left from the explosion splattered onto the paneling.

"I got another one!" the dark-skinned boy exclaimed, his eyes sparkling with pride.

"We still have the others to deal with, though," sounded Inigo from behind them.

"But do we _have_ to take them out?" Perry challenged. "I mean, what's the worst they can do? Get us dirty?"

"They can splat us," he deadpanned.

"Oh, uh, yeah." He scratched the back of his head. "They can."

"Let's keep moving," Inigo commanded. He raised the roller for a vertical flick, creating another path for the three to swim in. Turning into squids, they swam around the boss, avoiding the loaves of bread it sent at them. Eventually, they met up with Roy, Octavia, and Bonnie, who were dancing around ink pistons plaguing the arena. The boy with the ponytail emerged from the ink and swung his weapon vertically once more, creating another path. He gestured for them to follow him, and they heded his command with no further complaints. At last, they met up with Alexis, Agent 3, the roller wielder, and the charger wielder, who were right in the middle of a conversation. Inigo was the first to emerge, but upon sight of the two newcomers, he submerged back into the ink.

"Uh... Inigo?" Roy questioned. "Are you OK?"

"Not them..." he groaned. "I don't want to see them."

Curious, Perry took a few steps closer to the group, listening in on the conversation once more. "Geez," the black-haired inkling complained. She jumped back at the Octo Oven's next attempt to splat her. "This guy just won't quit!"

"We have to wait, or things will go a rye," the grey-haired inkling reminded her. "This weird version of Octo Oven can't bake bread forever."

"And then once it's toast, we can go up there and pop that tentacle!" Alexis exclaimed, her finger on the trigger of her shooter.

"Right," Agent 3 said. "And speaking of waiting..." The machine began to shake. "Watch out!" Everyone jumped out of the way of the ejected loaves, allowing them to climb up it.

The charger wielder shot at the remaining Octarian, splatting it. "Go," she told the long-haired inkling. "Before it's bready for more."

She nodded and climbed up the loaves of bread, reaching the top. She initiated another Splashdown and burst the blue-and-green tentacle open, causing turquoise ink to gush out of the hole it was once it. She grabbed another can that was on the top of it and super-jumped back down to the ground. She gave the can to Alexis and held out her arm, beckoning everyone behind her. The huge tentacle popped out of the hole once more before diving back into the machine, reactivating it. The loaves ejected themselves to receive armor before going back into the oven. Perry bit his tongue, trying to suppress his laughter. Some more Octarians spawned on the top of it again, just before the Octo Oven roared to remove all ink from the arena. Oddly enough, the ink pistons seemed to be absent.

"Octosnipers!" the black-haired inkling gasped. "They'll end you in three seconds splat!"

One of the aforementioned Octosnipers noticed the group and turned its beam down to them, firing a few seconds later. It hit Agent 3's arm, causing her to grip it in pain.

"You're lucky it hit me," she grunted through her teeth, glancing over at the Rainbow Squids. "Now, run!"

A contraption came out of the side of the boss, and jets of turquoise ink started to shoot out of it. "There comes the glazing machine," the grey-haired lady mused.

The fair-skinned girl threw a curling bomb onto the ground, inking a trail. "Hurry!"

Everyone dove into the trail, swimming away from the glazing machine. As the oven spun around, it created a turquoise path in its wake. After the last curling bomb exploded, Agent 3 emerged to throw out another curling bomb, in which they all swam through once more. After covering about half the map in enemy ink, the Octo Oven put the glazing machine away and returned to attempting to headbutt the inklings with bread.

"I got this!" Alexis cheered. She broke the can she held open, and a Sting Ray appeared in her hands. She aimed it up at the Octosnipers and started to fire, piercing through the splash walls protecting them. One of them was splatted, pleasing the bronze-skinned girl. "Booyah!" she cheered. The special weapon disappeared after its duration had expired, leaving her to just hold the orange shooter again. Right as it ended, however, ink pistons landed beside her, spraying her with turquoise ink as they spun around.

"This boss is somethin', huh?" Agent 3 commented, crossing her arms.

"Even the _bread_ is armored, that has to count for somethin'," Perry added. No matter how ridiculous it looked, he still found it hilarious.

"No, that's just ridiculous," the grey-haired inkling groaned. "I still can't believe armored bread exists..."

"Bread aside, I have an idea," the long-haired girl announced. The oven started ejected loaves at her, but she simply dodged them with grace. _I see why she's called 'the Dreaded' by Iris now,_ Perry realized. _She's terrifying._ Bonnie decided to help her out a little bit by destroying the sprinklers present on the sides of the machine. After a few attempts, the oven shook and ejected all loaves from the oven.

"Alright! Time to put this plan in motion!" Agent 3 pulled out a Sting Ray, which she fired at the remaining Octosnipers. "Agent 1! Agent 2! Do ya think we can do a special attack?"

_Agent 1? Agent 2?_ The purple-eyed inkling blinked. _Does that mean... Alexis is an agent, too?_ He shook his head, dismissing the idea. _No, that's ridiculous. Why would little Alexis be associated with the squid who killed Iris's friends?_

"A special attack?" the grey-haired inkling gasped.

"Aw yeah, a special attack!" the black-haired inkling cheered. "It's been forever since we've done one of those!"

"K." After putting the Sting Ray, away, she started inking the sides of the bread to climb it. Once the three of them had reached the top, Agent 3 proclaimed, "Let's go!"

"One!" yelled the roller wielder, lifting her Hero Roller in the air.

"Two!" yelled the charger wielder, preparing a charged shot.

"Three!" yelled the shooter wielder, charging towards the tentacle.

The black-haired lady slammed her roller on the metal top, sending a wave of magenta ink at the tentacle. The grey-haired lady fired her Hero Charger, piercing the tentacle with a powerful shot. The long-haired girl kicked the tentacle and fired her Hero Shot, finally causing it to explode. The three of them super-jumped off of the machine, and the Octo Oven started to glow magenta. It tried to eject bread to attack, but all of it came out burnt. It attempted to retreat back inside the oven, but to no avail. Electricity crackled around it, and finally, it burst in an explosion of magenta ink, covering the arena with it.

"Booyah!" the Rainbow Squids cheered.

"We did it!" exclaimed Yuri.

"And now, it's definitely toast," Perry snickered. "Maybe we can use the leftovers as-"

"_Don't_ even think 'bout it," Via scolded, pointing a finger at him.

"Aight, aight, I'll keep quiet."

Everyone super-jumped back to where the checkpoint was, where they promptly exited. Roy, Octavia, and Bonnie were pushed towards the raised platforms, where the weapons they had gotten from the device disappeared. Once the three were free, everyone changed their ink colors back to normal and started heading back where they came from.

"We saw what's down there, and so we're keeping our promise," Roy stated. "We're leaving now."

"Can I escort you back to the surface?" Agent 3 offered. "I know this place better than you squids do."

Inigo gave a nod. "Y-Yeah," he stuttered.

The green-haired girl proceeded to take the lead and walked straight ahead. The tunnel began to narrow once more, and the posters and other decorations gradually began to disappear. Soon, natural light lit the tunnel, and then, they stepped onto the streets of Inkopolis, the sun beating down on them. Never before had Perry been so glad to be here, in the square, again.

"Inkopolis..." Agent 3 sighed. "It's been too long since I've seen the sun."

"Yeah, you're getting pale," the grey-haired inkling noted.

"We should have a beach party some time!" the black-haired inkling offered.

"Not until I find Gramps," she rejected. "I don't know how long that'll be, but I'm not leaving him alone." She frowned. "I already felt so bad the first time he went missing."

"Really? I couldn't tell," the charger wielder marveled. "You just seemed so determined to get Gramps back that... I didn't consider how you were feeling."

"Yeah," the roller wielder agreed, dropping the peppy demeanor she had earlier. "It takes a lot to keep a straight face in a situation like that." She smiled. "But beach party after you find Gramps?"

Agent 3 laughed. "Beach party after I find Gramps."

"A beach party?" Yuri muttered. He smiled and asked, "Could we join in?"

"Ehh... I don't think so," the grey-haired lady replied. "It's kinda an 'us' thing. Sorry."

"Aw," he moaned in disappointed. The dark-skinned boy then smiled and said, "Well, good luck finding this 'Gramps' guy!"

"Yeah, good luck," Alexis added.

"Thanks." The green-haired inkling looked up at the sky, the sun reflecting off of her tentacles. "It feels nice to hear that." She turned around and started heading back into the subway. "I should be going, now," she concluded. "I have a duty to do, whenever I like it or not."

Agent 3 gave one final nod to the group and headed back into the dark subway, alone.

* * *

**A/N: Woo! What did you think? Agent 3's appearance? The Squid Sisters' appearance? I've been excited to write this chapter for a while, since it's not every day I get to write about her. Now, the Season 2 finale is over, and we're back on hiatus! Well, we still have the bonus story tomorrow, then we'll be back on hiatus. Can you guess who it'll be about? Anyways, I don't know how many of you will read the bonus story, so I'll just say it now - Season 3 will debut in September, alongside the third bonus story. I'm also sorry that this is a little late, the answer up at the beginning took quite some time to write. I'll see you soon, and Branchwing, out!**


	58. Bonus Story 2: The Nightmare

_Agent 3's PoV_

_They're gone._

The Rainbow Squids had gone into the light, while they left her darkness. But perhaps it was her own fault. Her stubbornness and loyalty to Cap'n had kept her here, and now she was paying the price. She climbed up into the vents and slumped. _How long will it be until I can talk to my friends again?_ She gripped her sides. _What if I _never_ go back?_ A chilling thought, indeed.

Agent 3 laid down on the cold, metal ground, throwing her cape around her like a blanket. I'm so tired... Gripping her Hero Shot, she let herself relax, and soon, she found herself in the comforting darkness that is sleep.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself standing outside the door of her and her brother's apartment. She put a hand on the doorknob, finding it open. She twisted it to open the door, and she stepped inside to find no one in her immediate vision.

"Hello?" she called. "I'm home." No answer. "Hello?" Still, no answer. Maybe he's asleep.

She walked into her brother's bedroom to find him curled up on his bed, no sheets covering him. Oddly enough, his hair was still tied up as well. Gingerly, she approached him and kneeled down to see his face. A peaceful look framed him, his eyes closed.

"Hey, wake up," she muttered. She placed a hand on his arm to give him a little shake, only to find that no warmth emitted from his body. There was only a chilling coldness.

She retracted her hand, gasping as tears formed in the corner of her eyes. He's dead. She pulled him closer to him, lowering her head to sob into his chest. However, instead of burying it in some cloth, her face suddenly became pricked with hay. Agent 3 lifted her head to find that she was back at her old home, the farm, some hours away from Inkopolis. A seahorse was staring down at her, yellow eyes filled with curiosity. It lowered its head and nudged her.

The green-haired girl rose to her feet, her tears still wet. She exited the stall to find her sister, leading a seahorse out to a field. She looked over at her and waved.

"Hey! Why the long face?" she asked.

"I..." She placed a hand on her arm. "It's nothing."

"You sure?" she questioned once more.

"Yes."

"Oh." She blinked. "Alright." Her sister continued walking. "The race's about to start, c'mon!"

"The race?" Where she was from, they often had seahorse races, but she didn't expect one now. "Oh, right."

Agent 3 walked out of the barn, and she immediately found herself in the bleachers, alongside other citizens of the town, cheering names. On one seahorse was her sister, and on the seahorse right next to her was... Tiffany Teuthis, smirking.

She scowled as the name popped into her mind. She loathed that lady. She wouldn't let her ruin another life. The green-haired girl launched herself from her seat, towards the race track.

"_Tiffany!_" she roared.

The lady's dark eyes glanced over at her, surprised. However, she quickly put on a straight face as she kicked the side of the seahorse, causing it to start galloping towards her, tearing through the obstacles on the race track. Now, the two inklings were racing towards each other, with Tiffany's seahorse threatening to run Agent 3 over. As soon as the long-haired inkling stepped onto the dirt, however, she found herself falling through it, soon landing in a dark area lit with speakers.

Cap'n Cuttlefish struggled in the rope that bound him the pole, while the Octobot King hovered over to him. It turned around to reveal DJ Octavio, his cold eyes staring right into her own. He lifted himself into the air and began to send two silver fists down at Agent 3. She jumped out of the way, only to fall into the abyss. She reached her hand out for the old man, only for him to stare at her with sad, brown eyes.

She crashed on the pavement of the square, her body aching. She rose to find the Rainbow Squids, staring at her with cold expressions.

"Guys...?" she whimpered.

They gave her no answer, turning their backs on her and leaving. Except Inigo. The fair-skinned boy was in the middle of the group, staring directly at her with indigo eyes. He tilted his head in an absent-minded manner, though his face remained the same.

"You don't deserve to be with us," he said blankly, his deep voice lacking any inflections it may have once had. He took a step towards Agent 3, who had taken a few steps back in return. "It's your fault you left." He took his hair out of his ponytail and started to twirl a free tentacle around his hand. "We don't need you. We never needed you."

"T-That's not true," the green-haired girl protested, taking even further steps back.

A smile came across the indigo-haired boy's face. "Oh, but it is." He took a few more steps towards her, now morphing into her brother. "He needed you," her brother stated with Inigo's voice. "And you left him."

"Stop it!" she cried out, tears pricking her eyes. "He's not dead!"

He gave an empty laugh before shifting into the form of Cap'n Cuttlefish. "You don't have much time left to save him," taunted Inigo's voice. "Like Marie said, it's been two months since she's last heard from him."

"He has to be with what's-her-face!" Agent 3 fell to her knees, looking up into the Captain's brown eyes. "He has to be!"

He ignored her, now transforming into one of her exes. "And what about everyone you've dated?" the deep voice, in stark contrast with the feminine form he had taken, questioned, eyebrows furrowing. He transformed into another ex. "You've hurt them, too." The long-haired inkling fell to her back, crawling away from the shape-shifting inkling. He continued taking the forms of her exes, all while advancing towards her. She hit an invisible barrier, where he retook Inigo's form in front of her. "You've hurt us all."

"I..."

Inigo proceeded to transform into a green serpentine creature with four long arms, the undersides of them white and filled with suction cups, not unlike an ancient squid. The hands were clawed, being tipped with red. Tiffany's head was plastered on the top of the creature, appearing as if she was stitched onto it.

"Who are you gonna save now, buttercup?" hissed Tiffany's voice. "You can't save everyone!" She dove towards her with an open gape, and Agent 3 covered her face, screaming.

When she opened her eyes, however, she was staring at the darkness once again. She took some deep breaths, sitting straight up. She scanned the area for a little bit before rising to her feet again. Clenching her Hero Shot tighter, she started walking again, her eyes and ears once again alert for any strange Octarians that may come her way.

_It was just a dream,_ she reminded herself. _It was just a dream..._

* * *

**A/N: Hey, so here's Bonus Story 2. It's pretty short, but hopefully it gives you an insight into Agent 3 - what she was like before she became Agent 3, and her fears. It may seem a little confusing, but I trust you, it'll make much more sense when I reveal her identity, which shouldn't be too hard to figure out beforehand. Remember, when you guys find out about her identity, so will at least one of the Rainbow Squids. See you in September, and Branchwing, out!**


End file.
